I stole this from TFL.
He may be disiplined. I love it. Can you imagine what would happen if someone with a CCW left their gun in a public bathroom?


Published: February 6, 2002

Officer who left gun in store bathroom may be disciplined

A Spartanburg police officer who accidentally left his gun in a convenience store bathroom last week, only to have it taken by a civilian, could face disciplinary action.  

Police administrators reviewing the case could issue Officer Harold A. Edwards, 27, anything from a letter of reprimand to a three-day suspension, said Tony Fisher, director of the Public Safety Department.

“It is an infrequent occurrence, but it is something that does happen occasionally (across the country),” Fisher said of officers’ misplacing firearms.

At 8:28 a.m. Jan. 31, Edwards, a nearly two-year veteran of the department, placed the 9 mm gun on a paper towel dispenser in a bathroom at Wilco on 2798 E. Main St.

The gun is valued at more than $500.

Less than two hours later, Edwards returned to look for the gun. When he realized it was gone, he called the department for help. Investigators lifted fingerprints and reviewed store video.

A 40- to 50-year-old, 5-foot-10-inch man was the first person who entered the bathroom after Edwards, according to store video.

He came out with his vest zipped and purchased coffee before leaving in a truck with a gray utility compartment and ladder racks, according to a report filed at the Spartanburg County Public Safety Department.

Investigators searched for the truck and located 59-year-old James McKinney of 230 Spruce Road who had the gun. McKinney told investigators he had been afraid to take the gun to the store clerk, fearing she would misinterpret the action as a crime, Lt. Steve Lamb said.

McKinney said he planned to watch ads in the paper for a missing gun, Lamb said. McKinney returned the gun in perfect condition with no ammunition missing, Lamb said.

Edwards could not be reached for comment, but Capt. Jennifer Kindall said the officer had been extremely worried about his missing firearm.

“It was very stressful to him, having to deal with the thought of his gun being involved in a crime or injury,” Kindall said.

[b][red]ROOKIE!!!!!![/red][/b]   Should be 30 days without pay.

It took him TWO HOURS to figure out that he had left it behind?  Or maybe two hours to trace his steps back.  Still, wouldn't you figure he'd notice the missing weight?  

[b][size=3]LOSER !!![/b][/size=3]

COP BASHERS!

Everyone makes mistakes sometimes and cops are people too.

Actually, there is so much weight on the modern duty belt, plus that you become acclimated to wearing it, you can actually go without noticing the missing weight.  I know that in the past, I have left the docket room and got all the way to my car before realizing that I hadn't replaced my handgun.  Ask anybody who is/was a booking officer and they can tell you it happens just about every shift and that they have to call dispatch and have the officers return "to pick up some equipment", code for "hey dummy, you forgot your gun".  Some jails/booking areas have signs on the way out reminding you to check your equipment.  Not to say this is the same as leaving it in a publicly accessible restroom.  I wonder why he had it out of his holster in the first place?

Maybe he washed his gun and set it out to dry?

At least the police did some good detective work to figure out who took it. [:E]

Spartanburg is where I was born, and where I've been a resident my entire 73 years.  Sometimes, like in this case, that's embarrassing.  According to the local paper, there's 1000 times the number of officers per capita as most large cities.  Does that make me feel any safer?  No.

I just asked two coworkers, who are former Spartanburg city cops, about leaving a pistol in a bathroom, and one said that more than once they've heard of guys who dropped their pistol in a toilet as they pulled-up their pants.  One of the guys ruined a pager when that happened.  Both said they used to either take-off their belt, or at least their pistol and radio before dropping their pants.  After hearing that, I can more easily understand how that happened.z