OVERGAARD, Ariz. — A 23-year-old Phoenix man is in critical condition after shooting himself in the head while trying to show that a handgun could not be fired while he had the safety mechanism engaged.

The Navajo County Sheriff's Office said Christen Reece fired his handgun Wednesday while shooting with six other people outside Overgaard in eastern Arizona.

Friends took Reece to the local fire department, where he was treated before being airlifted to a Scottsdale hospital for surgery.