A Lodi, California police SWAT officer was at a Reading Roundup children's community event showing tactical equipment to the children. A boy, about 6 to 8 years old, walked up behind the officer and was able to pull the trigger on the Glock 35 handgun that was holstered on his thigh.
The bullet struck the officer's leg. He was treated at the hospital for a minor injury and released.
According to police, that model Glock "doesn't have an external safety or anything like that. The gun functioned how it was supposed to. When the trigger was pulled, the gun went off."
Lodi police released a statement that read, in part, "this should have never happened, especially in an environment where children were present. We're fortunate this event didn't result in a tragedy."
Investigators want to talk with the boy about what happened so they can prevent incidents like this in the future.
If this can happen to a police officer, you have to wonder about how dangerous these guns are around children. Pretty shocking that this happened.
ReplyDeleteGuns do not belong in classrooms. Arming teachers is a bad idea.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely stupid thing to happen, especially given that many who read this blog are very much against citizen carry of any kind, preferring that to be the sole province of the police.
ReplyDeleteI certainly hope the officer is dismissed, even charged for failing to safely holster his weapon in a manner that would have prevented this.
Im reminded of the moron who was flashing a Glock around in a classroom, saying he was the only one qualified to carry the weapon...before shooting himself in the leg.
Sorry, but I just don't buy that having a badge makes a cop anymore qualified than a trained citizen with respect to firearms. Especially seeing as this kind of thing happens a lot.
They're talking to the CHILD to make sure this doesn't happen again? Who is talking to the supposedly responsible cop who allowed this to happen? If the gun doesn't have a safety, that doesn't mean it's not the cop's fault, it means that he needs to get a gun that does have a safety.
ReplyDeleteNote that the article points out that the Glock does not have an external safety, so to a certain extent, it is nobody's fault (except the manufacturer's).
ReplyDeleteThat said, when I was a cop, our holsters completely covered the trigger and trigger guard.