Retired
Chicago cop's accidently discharges when dropped at Boy Scout meeting, injures
leg
CHICAGO — A retired Chicago cop
accidentally shot himself in the leg when he dropped a fanny pack containing
his handgun following a Boy Scout troop meeting at a suburban school, police
said.
The revolver discharged inside
the belt-like bag after apparently landing on its hammer, Des Plaines Police
Chief William Kushner said. He added that the man, who had been visiting his
grandson's troop meeting, is licensed to carry a concealed gun and didn't break
any laws, The (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald reported
(http://bit.ly/100Zb6gDes ).
"There is no law
prohibiting firearms in the school," Kushner said.
The mishap occurred in the
Iroquois Community School in Des Plaines on Monday night, several hours after
the regular school day had ended. No one else was injured.
"This is an unfortunate
accident," Kushner said. "There was no collateral damage.
The meeting was over when the
gun went off, and scouts and their parents were walking out of the building,
said Boy Scout Troop 38 Scoutmaster Bryan Hedstrom.
"For the most part
everybody had left," he said.
School principal Michael Amadei
said an in email to parents that the man's injuries aren't as serious as
initially thought. He also said the school will discuss the incident with
police and the Boy Scouts organization.
"Of course, the district
does not condone bringing firearms on school grounds," the note said.
A District 62 spokeswoman,
Mindy Ward, said school district officials hadn't yet drawn conclusions about
possible policy changes in wake of the accident.
Medina
Police Chief & ex-ATF supervisor Patrick Berarducci accidently shoots self
in right leg
MEDINA, Ohio -- Medina Police
Chief Patrick Berarducci accidentally
shooting himself in the leg at home. Berarducci, 62, said the accident occurred
about 9:45 a.m. as he was getting ready to go to work.
"I put on a new belt and
strung the holster through it," Berarducci said. "I pushed my pistol
into it (a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber Shield handgun), the holster buckled
a little on the inside, just enough to catch the trigger."
The gun discharged, sending a
bullet through his right thigh. Beraducci said the entrance and exit wounds
were about four to five inches apart. He also said the bullet landed on the
floor, just under his dog's dish.
He then sent his wife, Judy, to
his police car to fetch a trauma bag.
"Fortunately we trained
all of our cops in January how to treat gunshot wounds," Berarducci said.
"She brought the bag in, and she used the dressings inside that I told her
to use. With some added direct pressure, the bleeding stopped."
Judy, his wife of 39 years, did
mildly scold him because, "Luckily you were conscious and we able to tell
me what to do...otherwise, I wouldn't have known."
A call to Medina police quickly
brought some concerned personnel -- Berarducci said they were more concerned
than he was – to the house and they called an ambulance.
"We were all very
concerned," said Medina police Lt. Dave Birckbichler. "And we were
very relieved when he was released from Medina Hospital around 2 p.m. They
called his wound minor."
Berarducci said he didn't panic
because of his training with the ATF.
"I'm most proud that when
they put me in the ambulance, my blood pressure wasn't even elevated,"
Berarducci said. "The ATF told us just because you're shot doesn't mean
you're going to die. Just stay calm and deal with the injury.
"It's because of that training
that I am sitting home on my couch talking (to a reporter) instead of suffering
something worse."
Berarducci said he was willing
to talk about his accident because he wished to emphasize that whether people
are for or against the use of handguns, they are inherently dangerous and
individuals need to be trained to properly use them...and how to deal with
unintended consequences.
"Accidents do
happen," he said, "and sometimes bad things happen to good
people."
Berarducci said he hopes to be
back to work no later than Wednesday next week.
"I'm anxious to go back to
work, even though I know I will be the butt of so many jokes," he said.
"But I intend to hear all of them."
Cop
shot was in plain clothes, mistaken for an armed suspect
The cop injured in an April 10
friendly fire shooting was not wearing a police uniform, Lynchburg Police Chief
Parks Snead said Wednesday.
“Although the investigation is
not yet completed, the facts known to me at this time indicate that a uniformed
cop accidentally shot a plain clothes cop who he mistook for an armed suspect
under low light conditions,” he wrote in a news release, his first statement
since the night of the incident.
The injured patrol cop, Gary
Hilber, was shot once in the upper torso while chasing a suspect during the
execution of a search warrant at the McCausland Ridge Apartments on Langhorne
Road at about 10:40 p.m. April 10. Officials say Hilber is recovering at home.
Investigators are unsure if the
suspect who ran was armed since he eluded capture that night, Snead said
Wednesday. Cops are trained to assume any suspect is armed until proven
otherwise, the chief continued.
David Perry Gaines Jr., the
suspect whom cops were pursuing, was arrested Friday on various drug charges.
Snead declined to name the cop
who fired or give his rank or experience level, citing the ongoing
investigation.
The cop still works for the
department but performs administrative rather than law enforcement duties,
Snead said. The cop will remain on non-enforcement duties, until the conclusion
of the investigation, he added.
He declined to comment on what,
if any, additional training the cop may have to complete.
Snead said his staff will
review the investigation once complete to determine if any department procedures
need to be amended in the wake of the incident. As of Wednesday, he said there
were no changes to department protocol.
The chief is unsure how long
the investigation will take.
“We believe we know what
happened that night,” he said but noted investigators are reviewing the details
that lead to the shooting to prevent future friendly fire cases.
“The LPD is investing
significant resources into this investigation in order to gain a clear and
complete understanding of all the events that took place and in order to
complete the investigation in a timely matter,” he wrote in the statement.
Capt. Ryan Zuidema said those
resources included bringing in crime scene specialists and investigators to
collect and evaluate evidence.
City police are working with the
Lynchburg Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office to investigate the case. The Commonwealth’s Attorney’s
office will decide whether to pursue charges against the cop who shot Hilber at
the conclusion of the investigation, Snead said.
