Very interesting update in the Woodbury officer case

Going through my mail yesterday, I found that the St. Cloud Police Department had indeed sent me the report in the Woodbury police officer firearm discharge case. Opening it, I observed that they had sent me what looks to be the complete, unredacted report. Thanks very much to the St. Cloud Police Department for their prompt and excellent service. They were very professional in their handling of my requests, and I appreciate it very much.

The report is 32 pages, so I will only list the highlights here. If anyone has any other questions, feel free to email me.

The facts according to the report (paraphrased in this summation):

The police officer's name is Jeffrey Gort. He is apparently a 20-year veteran officer.

In the report, he states that he was training at a range earlier in the day. As they were policing their brass at the end of the session, he found a live round and placed it in his pocket, intending to use it the next day.

He had dinner, which included one beer.

Returning to his room, he unloaded his magazines, apparently to clean them. He then placed the live round in his duty magazine, and intended to return the magazine to its duty holster. He then mistakenly placed the magazine into his pistol.

He then decided to practice drawing and trigger pulls.

He drew his weapon, which was a Glock 22 .40 caliber handgun, and pulled the trigger. He then racked the slide, resetting the trigger, and returned the weapon to its holster. He then drew again, and pulled the trigger. The weapon discharged, sending the round into the wall.

He then placed his duty belt, with the handgun in it, into his duty bag, which he left unzipped. He then sat on the bed for the next 20-30 minutes, trying to figure out what to do and who to contact.

The person in the next room, a lady from Colorado, took cover when the round came through. She saw the damage. She apparently has some firearm experience, and figured out that a gun had likely discharged. Since the phone was on the desk next to the wall with the hole, she decided not to use it. She then went to the front desk to report the situation. The clerk went back to the room with her, saw the damage, and returned to the front desk and dialed 911, which responded.

The St. Cloud Police Department arrived, and briefly handcuffed Officer Gort and secured the room. They then started their investigation.

Officer Gort was given a PBT (I assume a Breathalyzer), which registered .000

The handgun was taken into St. Cloud police custody. A St. Cloud Police Armorer performed a function check, which revealed no problems with the handgun.

My observations:

1. The woman in the room was remarkably composed and thoughtful under the conditions she was in. I can only hope that I would act so calmly and rationally in the same circumstances.

2. A handgun is only a tool, just like a power saw or wood chipper, and accidents can happen, even to veteran police officers with decades of experience. The accident in this case happened between the officer's ears, as he should have triple-checked his weapon's status before practicing with it. The weapon performed just as it should, discharging when the trigger was pulled. I am not being judgmental here, this incident could have easily happened to anyone working with his or her firearm after a long, tiring day of training. This should be a valuable lesson to everyone who deals with firearms to triple and quadruple check their weapon's status before cleaning and/or practicing, and the Four Rules of Firearm Safety must always be used to have even more of a safety net.

3. I will be judgmental regarding the officer's actions after the ND. You'd think he would have immediately checked the next room to see if his round had hit anyone, but apparently not. I think at the very least he should have called 911 himself to report the incident, to give his brother officers a heads up, so they wouldn't be going into such a potentially dangerous situation without any information. Of course, one never knows exactly what they would do under the same circumstances, but I like to think that I would do a little more than just sit there twiddling my thumbs, especially with the experience that this fellow apparently has.

4. The St. Cloud Police Department responded appropriately and professionally, and ran their investigation by the numbers, regardless of the similar job status of the officer involved. They deserve credit for a job done fairly and well.

I will now follow up with the St. Cloud City Attorney and the Woodbury Police Department to obtain the final disposition of the case, again not because I have it in for the officer involved, but to make sure that he doesn't get any consideration that I or any other permit holder wouldn't. Seeing as how only "trained professionals" should have firearms, it's only fair that they be held to the same standards as us when something happens.