Drizzt
July 30, 2003, 10:04 PM
Firearms case ends sheriff's sergeant's job
07/29/03
ROBIN FRANZEN
A Multnomah County sheriff's sergeant and gun expert investigated this spring in connection with the Explorer Post he once supervised resigned from the agency after admitting he illegally owned an automatic weapon.
Patrick Coffeen, 43, pleaded guilty in Multnomah County Circuit Court on Friday to attempted unlawful possession of a machine gun, a Class C felony. The gun, for which he failed to get a federal registration, was his personal possession and had nothing to do with the Explorer Post, said his lawyer, Michael Staropoli.
"You can't have that weapon unless the federal government gives you permission, and he didn't have that permission," Staropoli said, calling it a career-ending mistake. Authorities described Coffeen as having extensive experience with firearms and an interest in paramilitary equipment.
Coffeen was allowed to plead guilty to the "attempted" charge, rather than an unlawful possession of a machine gun charge, because he is a first-offender with no criminal history, said Pat Callahan, a senior deputy district attorney for Multnomah County.
"He took responsibility," Callahan said, "and it wasn't like he was up and down the neighborhood spraying bullets.
"It's a tragic mistake for a guy with a good career in law enforcement to do something like this," Callahan said.
To address questions raised about Coffeen's handling of Explorer Post 900's finances, the plea deal required Coffeen to pay a fine of $2,550, which will go to the Explorer Post, Staropoli said.
On April 16, authorities served a search warrant at Coffeen's Gresham home, looking for Explorer financial records as well as guns, computer equipment and other items he was suspected of buying with Explorer funds. He supervised Post 900 from 1997 to October 2002.
Callahan said the investigation into Coffeen's Explorer activities showed financial "irregularities" but nothing that rose to the level of criminal prosecution. Finding the illegal machine gun was almost incidental to the Explorer inquiry, he said, but it was also the piece of evidence that most solidly supported a criminal charge.
Because of the felony conviction, Coffeen will lose his certification as an Oregon law enforcement officer and will be prohibited from possessing a firearm.
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1059479766262070.xml
07/29/03
ROBIN FRANZEN
A Multnomah County sheriff's sergeant and gun expert investigated this spring in connection with the Explorer Post he once supervised resigned from the agency after admitting he illegally owned an automatic weapon.
Patrick Coffeen, 43, pleaded guilty in Multnomah County Circuit Court on Friday to attempted unlawful possession of a machine gun, a Class C felony. The gun, for which he failed to get a federal registration, was his personal possession and had nothing to do with the Explorer Post, said his lawyer, Michael Staropoli.
"You can't have that weapon unless the federal government gives you permission, and he didn't have that permission," Staropoli said, calling it a career-ending mistake. Authorities described Coffeen as having extensive experience with firearms and an interest in paramilitary equipment.
Coffeen was allowed to plead guilty to the "attempted" charge, rather than an unlawful possession of a machine gun charge, because he is a first-offender with no criminal history, said Pat Callahan, a senior deputy district attorney for Multnomah County.
"He took responsibility," Callahan said, "and it wasn't like he was up and down the neighborhood spraying bullets.
"It's a tragic mistake for a guy with a good career in law enforcement to do something like this," Callahan said.
To address questions raised about Coffeen's handling of Explorer Post 900's finances, the plea deal required Coffeen to pay a fine of $2,550, which will go to the Explorer Post, Staropoli said.
On April 16, authorities served a search warrant at Coffeen's Gresham home, looking for Explorer financial records as well as guns, computer equipment and other items he was suspected of buying with Explorer funds. He supervised Post 900 from 1997 to October 2002.
Callahan said the investigation into Coffeen's Explorer activities showed financial "irregularities" but nothing that rose to the level of criminal prosecution. Finding the illegal machine gun was almost incidental to the Explorer inquiry, he said, but it was also the piece of evidence that most solidly supported a criminal charge.
Because of the felony conviction, Coffeen will lose his certification as an Oregon law enforcement officer and will be prohibited from possessing a firearm.
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1059479766262070.xml