Duluth cop's gun discharges in City Hall restroom

[RamboLiberal]

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The officer had been using the restroom at about 4:20 p.m. on April 28. He took off his cell phone, his badge, pistol, handcuffs, extra magazine and mace holder from his belt and placed them on an infant changing table in the restroom.

After he washed his hands, the last item he picked up was his .40 caliber Smith & Wesson handgun. He reached for the gun with his right hand and with his left hand began to replace the infant changing table to its stowed position against the wall.

“As I did these two motions together, my handgun slipped out of my right hand,’’ the officer wrote in his report. “I believe that the edge of the changing table hit the barrel end of my handgun as I lifted it, knocking the handgun out of my hand. I immediately reached to grab for my handgun before it could fall onto the floor of the restroom. As I was able to grab it with my right hand, one of my fingers apparently accidentally depressed the trigger on the handgun, discharging one round from the handgun, which went through the very bottom of the wall-mounted baby changing table and into the eastern wall of the restroom.’’

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“I have always had respect for firearms, but that level of respect, and my humility, have increased as a result of this event,’’ the officer wrote in his report.

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/200137/group/homepage/

At least he was honest. And this is how majority of those "dropped" guns "accidentally" fire.

[izquierdista]

1. 4:20?

no comment

[petronius]

4. LOL! That stopped me too...

:)

[Katya Mullethov]

6. Mmmmhm

Probably number two , too .

[Ian David]

2. He should have said, "That damn Koala kept looking at me... LOOKING at me while I peed..."

[liberaltrucker]

3. Oh, you mean his FIREARM

Long day at work. :blush:

[Sonoman]

5. Tell me, idiot,do you always keep one in the chamber?

The S&W .40 is a semi.

Sonoman

[Flyboy_451]

7. I'm not aware of any LEO that does not have a round chambered...

at all times while in uniform. To not have a round chambered is foolish and asking for trouble if you ever need your gun RIGHT NOW.

a better approach to this situation would have been to remove the entire duty belt, with all equipment secure in its carrier. Most, if not all departments require the use of at least a level two retention holster. It is all but impossible for the gun to fall from such a holster while removing your duty belt as at least two retention devices must be overcome as well as the tension from a properly fitted holster. this is a far safer approach than unneeded handling of the firearm.

JW

[RamboLiberal]

8. As well as the majority of we civilians who know how to handle

a semi-auto.

[YllwFvr]

11. I imagine if he was caught without a round in the chamber

He would at least get chewed out

[ileus]

9. It's hard not to grab at your pistol if it's falling. I crashed my bike last year...

and my pistol had come out of it's holster during the wreck. When I stood up I felt it falling (inside my shirt) and I tried to catch it, and did. I could just have easily caught it with a finger in the trigger guard. After that I tightened up my retention on my sidearm, a little later on I started riding with my LCP instead of my M&P 9c.

[krispos42]

10. It takes an effort of will to NOT try to grab something falling.

We've probably all done it... accidentally dropping or knocking something onto the floor that you absolutely should not try to grab. Maybe it's really hot or sharp.

So your reflex to grab has already kicked in by the time your conscious brain manages to formulate an override order and you wind up pulling your hand back just before you would have touched it.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

15. Yeah, we had training and lectures on letting stuff fall

when I worked at an automotobile stamping plant, there were lectures, and foremen would re-enforce them. If anything starts to fall, move away. Do not try to catch anything. Some of the things that fall will remove fingers as easily as a knife or an axe. Sheet metal can be sharp.

It's a strange anti-reflex habit, letting things fall.

[RSillsbee]

12. I have to ask

The officer had been using the restroom at about 4:20 p.m. on April 28. He took off his cell phone, his badge, pistol, handcuffs, extra magazine and mace holder from his belt and placed them on an infant changing table in the restroom.

In most of the public restrooms I have been in the changing station is as far as possible from the toilets.

Why would this cop leave, especially his weapon, but all that equipment where it wasn't under his direct control in public like that?

[cleanhippie]

13. Actually, most disabled-access stalls also have a changing table.

That extra room is good for not only those in wheelchairs, but provides a bit of privacy and space in a stall setting.

[Glassunion]

14. I had a long layover in Chicago once...

The weather was really bad and every flight was grounded. The airport was crowded to say the least.

I went to take a leak and found a guy in the men's room, sitting on his luggage in front of the changing station using it as his desk. He had his laptop, notepad, cell phone, etc... spread out all over it and was using it as a desk. Not the most sanitary of office spaces, but effective.