A firearms training and safety expert says his examination of evidence and information about the fatal shooting of Pam Huber at her Highmore home leads him to believe it was not an accident.

John Farnam, president of Defense Training International of Fort Collins, Colo., was among several prosecution witnesses Friday in the trial of Ken Huber, a former Highmore police chief charged with alternate counts of murder and manslaughter in the death of his wife last year.

"The flow of events and the ultimate outcome in this case were not consistent with an accidental shooting," Farnam said, adding that he also surveyed the shooting scene.

Farnam has taught gun use and safety courses to police across the nation and in other countries for nearly four decades. He said Huber, 42, was a trained firearms instructor and should not have had a finger on the trigger on the night of the shooting unless he intended to fire his gun.

Under cross examination from a defense attorney, Farnam conceded that gun accidents do occur. But he said there have been only a handful of them in his classes over the years during millions of rounds that were fired.

Farnam admitted under cross examination it's possible to accidentally fire a gun when startled or tripping. That is unlikely, he added, if the person handling the gun does it safely and does not have a finger on the trigger.

Huber's lawyers are expected to argue that he lost his balance and accidentally shot his wife. Huber told authorities on the night of the shooting that he was moving his gun from the bedroom when it accidentally went off.

Pam Huber, 46, was shot once in the forehead as she lay on a bed Oct. 28, 2007. She died several days later in a hospital. One of the couple's young daughters was in bed with her at the time of the shooting.

The Hubers had a rocky marriage, and her husband admitted to several affairs. He was having an affair with the local prosecutor when his wife was shot.

State's Attorney Jennifer Lowrie was the first person on the scene of the shooting. She testified Wednesday that she still loves Huber and has spoken with him on the phone almost daily since his wife's death.

Others who testified Friday said Huber was an expert marksman and extremely safe with handguns.

Hand County Sheriff Doug DeBoer said he has practiced shooting handguns with Huber for several years and that Huber always was careful with his weapon. At one firearms training session, DeBoer said he watched Huber practice safely holding his trigger finger to the side of his gun.

The sheriff said Huber had talked about being unhappy in his marriage. Huber mentioned once that he wanted to go to Iraq and work for DynCorp International, which provides international police services, DeBoer said.

Huber never mentioned being worried that his wife would get custody of their two daughters in a divorce, the sheriff said.

Terry Deuter, a former state trooper from Kadoka, said Huber frequently visited an elaborate shooting range near Miller. Huber never fired a round accidentally and did not miss his targets, Deuter said.

"He was always careful and very good with his weapon," Deuter said.

The retired trooper said Huber always kept his index finger off the trigger unless he intended to fire. Deuter said Huber, like most peace officers, did not empty the bullets from his gun when he got home.

"He told me that his weapons were always loaded."

Jurors traveled by bus Friday afternoon to Highmore to view the scene of the fatal shooting.

The trial is to resume Tuesday. It was moved to Fort Pierre out of concern that an impartial jury could not be found in Hyde County.

If convicted of murder, Huber will be imprisoned for life without parole. A manslaughter conviction would result in a prison term up to life.