A 30-year-old man killed himself Sunday night with a pistol that he presumed was unloaded, the Indiana County coroner said.

Brian Marshall Morgan put a .22-caliber handgun to his head and the gun discharged, Coroner Michael A. Baker said. He classified Mr. Morgan's death as an accident.

A friend was with Mr. Morgan when the shooting occurred. This witness, who was not identified by investigators, said Mr. Morgan believed the handgun was empty.

Mr. Baker said he found no evidence of a struggle at the shooting scene, a farm outside Grant, Indiana County. But the coroner said alcohol probably was a factor. Whiskey and beer cans were found at the site of the shooting, he said.

Mr. Morgan was from Rochester Mills, Indiana County.