Whether it is or it is not, the gun is always loaded. Muzzle downrange, always. Finger off until you are ready.
Getting your guns in
Bring firearms into the range in a bag or a holster, never carried in your hands. Nobody there knows you or your training, so keep them cased until you are at the bench.
Open the case downrange
Before you lift a gun out, check which way it points. If it is pointed at you or the people behind you, close the case, turn it, and open it so the gun comes out muzzle-downrange. Everything faces downrange, always.
Locked open when you are not shooting
Any gun you are not currently shooting stays with the slide locked open so the range safety officer and everyone else can see it is clear. Same for a rifle: bring the case up to the bench, peek, orient it downrange, then open it. Do not pull it off the floor sweeping the muzzle around.
Hot brass
A casing lands on you or down your shirt. Get your finger out of the trigger guard first and keep the muzzle downrange, then do your hot-brass dance. Panicking with a finger on the trigger and the gun waving around is how negligent discharges happen.
Nobody is above a negligent discharge, military and police included. Switching to a lighter-trigger gun? Dry-practice that trigger first so you do not blow through it.