Gunfire Shatters Quiet at AC Library: Retired Police Officer Shoots Self in Foot...

[xocet]

Gunfire Shatters Quiet at AC Library
Retired Police Officer Shoots Self in Foot

Appleton City Journal, May 10, 2013, Volume 133, Number 3
by Cindy Arms, Sac-Osage Publishing Staff

Gunfire startled librarians and visitors alike around noon on Saturday, April 27, when Rich Bauer accidentally discharged a weapon he was carrying while visiting the Appleton City Library. Bauer was injured by a bullet through his foot and drove himself to the hospital. No one else was injured.

According to the police report, Bauer, who was doing some work at the library, had a semi-automatic weapon in his hand as Police Chief Bill Smith entered the library. Smith stated he was on his way to the library to meet with Bauer and was nearby when he heard five shots and smelled the odor of gun powder. According to the report, when Smith saw Bauer, he said, "I think I shot myself in the foot."

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http://www.iclassifiedsnetwork.com/editionviewer/default.aspx?Edition=8d77972b-de18-4229-931a-4f9b83fa4319

If only everyone were allowed to carry around loaded weapons....

[denverbill]

1. It would be different if teachers and janitors were armed.

They'd get lots of training in proper firearm use, unlike police officers.

[Ptah]

2. From the last paragraph:

As Bauer is a retired police officer,
no further action was taken.

[Scuba]

3. Five shots?

[rdharma]

6. That struck me as odd too.

Also the part about "getting rid" of the pistol and refusing to tell where it was.

[spin]

8. Five accidental discharges? ...

The only way i can see this happening is if his pistol went full auto due to a malfunction (unlikely) or because some fool had modified the trigger pull and lowered it to an unsafe level.

[Journeyman]

4. More unsettling than shooting himself in the foot is the aftermath . . .

When questioned at the hospital, the self-shooter told the police chief his gun "accidentally discharged" and the firing pin must have "malfunctioned." When the police chief asked to check the weapon, the self-shooter stated he "got rid of it" on the way to the hospital and refused to tell where it was located.

Because the self-shooter is a retired police officer, "no further action was taken."

Imagine. A retirement package that includes the option to be a total threat to society while enjoying a blanket "stay of jail (or even interrogation)" card.

[mokawanis]

9. They love to pin the blame on the gun

Damn things seem to have minds of their own, always malfunctioning and misfiring.

[bluedigger]

5. And I feel guilty when I forget to turn off my cell phone.

[xocet]

7. LOL n/t