Man shot by pistol thrown in trash

A man in Kansas was helping unload trash and accidentally hit the trigger of a thrown short-barreled pistol. This caused the pistol to fire and hit his left hand. In addition to the pain felt by the man, the nearby witnesses heard the pop of the gun and saw blood on the man'es left hand.
This was a very unexpected thing, even in a gun rich country such as the United States. After all, a loaded gun in the trash is not something that you would ever expect to see. The gun was loose in the trash and covered with mud.
The common assumption in such a case is that this gun was disposed off after the commission of a crime. Detectives are investigating this possibility.