COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- A 25-year-old man was shot and killed at a shooting range in Colorado Springs.

Otis Freison of Aurora, Colo., was killed Saturday. Authorities said Freison was shot in the chest while shooting with friends at the Rampart Range Road shooting area, which is on U.S. Forest Service land. The range is in the Pike National Forest, near the Garden of the Gods park.

A spokeswoman for the El Paso County Sheriff’s office told 7NEWS the man was accidentally shot by a friend as he was unloading the 9mm handgun. “The person was trying to clear their weapon when the gun fired,” said Lt. Lari Sevene.

"As a general rule, everyone is on the line parallel to each other and their firearms are pointed down range, but this is a public range so there is no oversight," Sevene said.

That lack of oversight should lead officials to close the range, according to the victim's father.

Freison's father, also named Otis Freison, told 7NEWS reporter Lane Lyon, “This is something that was preventable.”

Frieson said he believes the shooting area should be closed, based on large crowds he saw Sunday when he visited where his son died.

“It was pretty disturbing,” he said. “I took pictures of toddlers running up the hill where their parents were shooting. It was like a carnival.” Freison said.

“Individuals are responsible for their actions, but this situation doesn’t allow for people to be responsible,” Freison said.

“If it’s not closed, there needs to be some type of supervision or safety zone,” he said.

The area, known as South Rampart Shooting Range, sees 40,000 visitors a year, said Brent Botts, District Ranger for the US Forest Service.”

Botts stressed responsibility falling upon users of the range.

“I compare it to being on a beach with out a life guard,” Botts said.

A National Rifle Association-sponsored shooting range adviser inspected the trash-strewn site in April 2007, according to a decision memo on the Forest Service Web site.

The adviser "recommended that supervision on site was needed immediately," the memo said.

In 2006, an article in The (Colorado Springs) Gazette described the range as chaotic and full of trash, from beer cans to computer monitors and refrigerators.

Botts told 7NEWS large dumpsters filled with trash are taken from the area six times a year. The decision not to have a range master on site has come down to available resources.

When asked what changes were implemented since reccommendations were made in 2007, Botts said berms were built down below to prevent lead contamination, a perimeter was established behind the shooting range to make sure visitors don't go where people are shooting, and large signs were posted in lieu of a range manager.

The president of the state association for the NRA argued the shooting area should not be shut down.

“Where this occurred is immaterial,” said Tony Fabian, of the Colorado State Shooters Association.

"What's important to focus on is what happened here. And what happened here was a complete irresponsibility of handling a firearm and in violation of safety rules," Fabian said.

The El Paso County District Attorney's Office will review the shooting to determine if charges should be filed.

There are similar impromptu shooting ranges on national forest land in Jefferson and Park counties. Another Rampart Range shooting area in Douglas County was used by Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris to practice using their weapons before the Columbine massacre.

Freison said he planned to visit with El Paso County sheriff’s officials on Tuesday. He declined to give too many details about the incident until is meeting.

Frieson said his son and the person who shot him had taken gun safety courses. “They knew they’re supposed to point their gun down range,” he added.

“I don’t believe in accidents,” Freison said. “I believe in carelessness, and that’s what happened here.”