Opps, cop leaves gun and duty belt in the bathroom.

[Yellowboat]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/storie...NOL-?SITE=TNKIN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

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."

:smackhead really how do you do that? I mean come on, it was a court house, the chances that crimals will be there is about 100%

 

[kilrtoy]

And you have never made a serious mistake in your life......
Oh wait, I forgot who I was writing to .....

 

[RiverDave]

And you have never made a serious mistake in your life......
Oh wait, I forgot who I was writing to .....

I gotta admit Kilrtoy, that's careless beyond careless.. Everybody makes a mistake every now and again, but to leave a loaded fire arm in a bathroom? That's not exactly like forgetting your keys.

RD

 

[squirtnmyload]

maybe she pitched a Tom Brown like loaf and had to get the hell outta there

 

[kilrtoy]

I gotta admit Kilrtoy, that's careless beyond careless.. Everybody makes a mistake every now and again, but to leave a loaded fire arm in a bathroom? That's not exactly like forgetting your keys.

RD

I never said what she did was not beyond serious or even understanding.....

 

[VoodooMedMan]

We all make stupid mistakes but that's nuts. As dumb as it is to leave a pistol I can maybe just maybe see it. But your talking a loaded .40 Sig and two loaded magazines and a duty belt. That's a lot of weight. Wouldn't you feel a hell of a lot lighter without it?

Also being a duty belt wouldn't there be handcuffs and MK-9 and stuff like that adding to the weight?

 

[RiverDave]

We all make stupid mistakes but that's nuts. As dumb as it is to leave a pistol I can maybe just maybe see it. But your talking a loaded .40 Sig and two loaded magazines and a duty belt. That's a lot of weight. Wouldn't you feel a hell of a lot lighter without it?

Also being a duty belt wouldn't there be handcuffs and MK-9 and stuff like that adding to the weight?

Well after taking a rather large... I suppose maybe you'd feel lighter so maybe that threw her off?

RD

 

[socalmoney]

It wasn't a big deal when Robert Blake left his at Vitello's Restaurant. It happens to the best of them.

 

[Baja Big Dog]

27 years not disipline...lets burn her at the stake!!!