DOH! irresponsible gun owner A COP

[chipperi]

This is the second time in several months this one is dated today.

Link

Jan 12, 4:15 PM EST

Officer accidentally leaves loaded gun in court bathroom
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MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- A sheriff's deputy on security duty at a Memphis courthouse accidentally left a loaded gun in a public bathroom there.

Sheriff's office spokesman Steve Shular said Lt. Mary Rhodes left her .40-caliber Sig Sauer pistol with 13 rounds and two 12-bullet clips in a women's bathroom for about 15 minutes last week before a court reporter found it and notified a deputy.

"Many people could have been shot or killed if the wrong person had walked into that bathroom and found the gun," Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee said. "It's a total breach and breakdown of security. You had many, many lives put at risk."

Judge James Beasley Jr., whose courtroom is only about 40 feet from the restroom, wrote a letter to Sheriff Mark Luttrell about the incident.

"I have gang members and their families in and around the courtroom daily," he wrote. "The public bathroom is just feet from my front door."

The officer's weapon and duty belt were left on top of a tissue dispenser in a stall.

"In her haste to return to work, she left her gun (and) belt in the stall," Shular said Friday.

Rhodes was a 27-year veteran who has never had to be disciplined before, he said.

Her captain counseled her about the incident, and it will be added to her personnel file.

"Lt. Rhodes ... is regarded by her captain and fellow deputies as an exemplary employee who made a mistake," Shular said. "She deeply regrets what happened."

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[Eric F]

irresponsible

?

There is a fine line between that and making an error. I would not go so far as to say she should not be held acountable but is making a mistake irresponsible?

"Many people could have been shot or killed if the wrong person had walked into that bathroom and found the gun," Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee said. "It's a total breach and breakdown of security. You had many, many lives put at risk."

you could say the same thing about a lot of stuff nukes amonium nitrate even a can of gasoline breach of security? sure lives at risk? maybe

my point being most folks blow a lot of stuff so far out of perportion so easily these days this is only marginal to me but hey thats just my opinion

 

[sacp81170a]

The officer's weapon and duty belt were left on top of a tissue dispenser in a stall.

I'm sorry, but a boneheaded stunt of that magnitude would have earned a suspension and a review board in my department. Hey, I can barely believe dropping a piece of equipment out of your duty belt and missing it, but leaving the whole duty belt? As hard as the darn things are to get on and off with belt keepers and everything else, walking out of the john without it would be roughly equivalent to walking out without your pants on. :banghead:

 

[TAB]

If leaving your duty belt and weapon in a bathroom is not irresponsible, I don't know what is. More so in a court house. IMO that should be grounds for termination.

 

[Javelin]

Any Soldier who leaves/loses a firearm is given an instant Article-15. This sounds about what she is being given.

People make mistakes and she is paying for hers. No harm done so termination would be a bit of a stretch considering her long standing history in the department.

 

[armoredman]

I have never left my entire duty belt anywhere but the closet! I cannot imagine taking the whole thing off, eek.

 

[jackmead]

The best one is the officer that shot himself in the leg while giving a lecture about gun safety. LOL

 

[mekender]

in a public bathroom at a couthouse where other people in the bathroom may well be violent criminals, its a bad thing to have your pants down and your gun sticking under the side of the stall... i know when i ccw, my gun gets laid on something rather than allowing it to be on the floor and visible to others...

so i can totally see how it happens... and it would not suprise me if pistols were commonly found in bathrooms just laying on things like that...

 

[takhtakaal]

I would have said something about a cop's pistol only being one of his tools, or that some cops aren't terribly gun-oriented, or that some of them are even squeamish about them, but a Sheriff's Dep't. officer on courthouse duty is most likely all about one thing -- providing armed security. She probably isn't investigating, she isn't doing traffic patrol in the halls, doesn't have to have a bunch of statutes memorized, she just does one thing. Minding that d***ed pistol should have been priority number one. I can't understand how someone can leave one behind. :banghead:

 

[ilbob]

I don't understand it either, but this kind of thing happens pretty regularly.

I don't know that it is a firing offense, but it certainly rises above the level of counseling, which is another way of saying no punishment at all.

One of the primary reasons for punishing bad behavior is to discourage others from misbehaving in a similar manner. Allowing her to slide is not going to encourage others in a similar situation to pay attention.

 

[Eric F]

other people in the bathroom may well be violent criminals

if they are that bad it wouldnt likely be the same bathroom she used.....there is usually a seperate bathroom they use(prisoners) also the stall is suposed to be checked before they enter.(protocall for every where I know any way)

officer on courthouse duty is most likely all about one thing -- providing armed security.

Not as true as you think, Although I agree it should be. the court officers I see are close to retirement, low shoot scores and papper runners.

 

[ilbob]

Not as true as you think, Although I agree it should be. the court officers I see are close to retirement, low shoot scores and papper runners.

My understanding is the court security guys here are mostly retired cops. The ones I have seen are all older then me. Interestingly, all the ones I remember seeing in uniform were carrying revolvers. My guess is that was what they carried when they were cops.

 

[RKBABob]

Its happened in my neck of the woods:

Oct. 18, 2005 - Sgt. Thomas A. Smith [of the Easton, PA police] loses gun in bathroom while attending a going away party for another officer at a steak house in Palmer Township.

If I remember correctly, Palmer Township police blocked all the exits and searched all employees and patrons for the Easton detective's $1,200 gun. It was never found. Nor do I think that simply being in a restaurant when an item goes missing is probable cause for a bodily search.

 

[bruss01]

Quote:
irresponsible ?

There is a fine line between that and making an error. I would not go so far as to say she should not be held acountable but is making a mistake irresponsible?

Here is a different way of looking at it.

An officer is issued a weapon. He is responsible for it, in other words, he is held to account for that piece of property and it's safekeeping. As long as it is in his possession or under his control, he can maintain that responsibility. When it leaves his possession, leaves his control, he can no longer assure that his responsibility for that piece of property is fulfilled. He has become "un-responsible" or irresponsible because he has surrendered (consciously or unconsciously) control of that for which he is responsible.

I would not say this officer is an irresponsible person, but leaving his firearm unattended in a public place, even if unintentional, is an abrogation of his responsibility to account for it's whereabouts and for any use it may be put to during his absence. It was an irresponsible act.

'nuff hair-splitting over the meaning of is...

 

[johnle]

I am annoyed at the article calling it a "clip"

 

[BobbyQuickdraw]

Ahem. It's hard to make a "number two" with a full belt on. So she had reason to take it off. However, forgetting it was pretty bad, and not realizing there is a lack of 12 pounds of equipment on your hip is pretty hard.

I wonder how many security officers, etc, forget their belts like this and then run back and get them before someone else notices.

 

[Firespecialist]

There should have been more done, IMHO. Do firemen run into burning buildings even when they forget their bunker gear? Do mechanics work on cars with their hands when they forget their tools? NO. I am no cop and don't know how their protocols work, but isn't a firearm issued to them? Therefore, you sign a contract saying that YOU are in complete responsibility of the gear issued to you? Who cares if nothing happened and everything turned out fine. What if that one violent person found that gun? What if a child found that gun? Too many what if's for such little repercussion. Let's not forget the how this makes the public look to the police department. A lot of people will lose respect for these kind of actions. As our chiefs tell us on the fire department, "To an extent, we don't care how well you can do the job, just look good doing it." Our money comes from the public and look like a bunch of morons out there does not help matters at all. That's just my .02 cents...

 

[jad0110]

The Sheriff of Onslow County NC (now of nationwide fame because of the sickening thing that happened to that pregnant, Camp Lejune Marine) did something very similar himself recently.

Oops.

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-162684198.html

 

[Owen Sparks]

This exact same thing happened in my town about fifteen years ago. One of the local policemen left his gun belt on the back of a toilet in a Wendys. An employee was the first to happen on it and he stole the pistol and stashed it outside to retrieve it later. Someone happened to see this. The hamburger flipper went to jail but I don't think the cop received anymore than a repremand.

 

[rust collector]

OK, let's learn from someone else's mistake

But does it serve any useful purpose to kick someone when they're down?

Didn't think so.

 

[Aaryq]

OH MY GOD! A POLICE OFFICER MADE A MISTAKE! BURN HER AT THE STAKE!

C'mon people. Yes, the person made a mistake and yes it's terrible. Have you never made a gun-related mistake in your life?

 

[Noxx]

Nor do I think that simply being in a restaurant when an item goes missing is probable cause for a bodily search.

You ain't kiddin'. I believe some raising hell might have been in order in that incident.

 

[Battlespace]

Any Soldier who leaves/loses a firearm is given an instant Article-15.

Soldiers are not "given" an Article 15. They are offered one. In addition, before any non-judicial punishment is offered in an instance of loosing a weapon there would be an AR 15-6 investigation to see what the circumstances were. In case you are wondering, I have been there, done that and gave out a few Tee-shirts along the way.

 

[Yosemite**Sam]

I sometimes teach about this specific type of situation. What do you do with that handgun when you're seated doing your business in a public restroom. I usually suggest the crotch area of the underpants as a place to rest the gun. If they're dirty line them with toilet paper first. Generally speaking using this method you shouldn't forget your gun when business is done.

 

[Eric F]

Do firemen run into burning buildings even when they forget their bunker gear? Do mechanics work on cars with their hands when they forget their tools? NO.

When the chips were down I did go into a fire with out my gear and made a grab! I also finger tighten my lug nuts who needs a wrench?.......ok just kidding about the second part of that.

Point is you can what if everything but we all must be convicted on what happened and not what might have happened. In this case all ended well enough said. She got a fit punishment.