Wash. state deputy leaves loaded gun in Ore. church bathroom
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LEBANON, Ore. - A church group chaperone got sick to his stomach and set his loaded gun on a window sill in the church bathroom, where it remained until a 17-year-old girl found it the next morning.
No one was hurt, and the holstered weapon had its safety on, Rev. Frank Moloney of First Christian Church told KVAL News.
The church made an announcement about finding an "expensive item" in the bathroom, and the man - visiting with a church group from Washington state, where he works as a sheriff's deputy - claimed his gun.
Moloney said a churchgoer filed a complaint with the sheriff's office in Washington state over the incident, which he said has shed a negative light on the church's reputation.
"It's an issue of a gun, and with everybody so freaked out about guns, it really did just get blown out of proportion," Moloney told KVAL News.
Church officials declined to name the deputy or the county in Washington where he works.
Lebanon's First Christian Church doubles as a soup kitchen. Initially investigators thought a homeless man left the gun behind; a mistake that Moloney said doesn't reflect on how the church treats their less fortunate guests.
"The gentleman took the (homeless) man down to the station to ask him questions. He was the last person seen exiting the bathroom," said Moloney. "And so an assumption, an incorrect assumption was made, and that's where i jumped in and said look just because this guy is homeless doesn't mean he has a gun."
Annie Daniels, a volunteer in the soup kitchen, told KVAL that none of the church-goers were in danger, and they still welcome everyone to a hot meal if they need one.
"Most of our guests ... are very nice people. They're very polite, they come through the line. They thank us for the food. Many of them appreciate what we do," said Daniels.
I remember an incident like this from a few years ago.  Only this time, it was one of our highly trained air marshals who left his firearm behind in the restroom on a flight.  It was found by another passenger. How awkward is that? I can only imagine the conversation that marshal had with his boss.
@JustSayin Some proof of your statement would be appreciated ,,, I can find no reference to that having ever happened. Could you just be creating a false-hood to make a point?
@Snoop @JustSayinÂ
2004 AP story
@Iconoclast @Snoop @JustSayin it was a woman air marshal :-(
Even well-trained police officers have 'issues' with weapons yet there are those out there advocating EVERYONE be armed ... such total stupidity. When will we decide that the paranoid, greedy and ignorant can no longer establish public policy regarding guns, reclaim some sanity and put bans on weapons in public; assault weapons; unlimited ammunition clips and demand complete back ground checks on all gun owners - the kinds of things civilized societies should easily be successful in accomplishing.
@ytboarder After you do all the things you just described ,, can you guarantee complete safety from violence ??
There is no excuse for this other than a mistake...and the person responsible should own it.
That said, put this into perspective. Â If we had an article from Komo about every gun owner who didn't make mistakes and DID act responsibly on this same day, it would be literally hundreds of thousands of articles.
To error is human. the officer made an error. No one was harmed and the weapon was returned to its rightful owner. It is unfortunate that someone felt emotionally disturbed enough to actually process a complaint. No doubt she will file a lawsuit here and claim emotional damage.
@Rick4001CS I dont see anything suggesting the complainant is "emotionally disturbed" over the incident within this story. Youre correct, the officer made an error but dealing with sick to their stomach can leave a persons awareness a little drained as they recover.
Dumb, stupid mistake. It happened in a church and maybe the powers to be was looking out and no was hurt or did the gun fall in the wrong hands. Good out come.
On the other hand, anyone reading this ever have food poisining? Regardless where he got it and most people that  sick to thier stomach ate something bad. Anyway, if you got food poisining, you tnd to loose your logical thought process. Most likely, he doesn't even remember sitting the gun down.
If I was in a position to dicipline, I would give him the benifit of the doubt if he was that sick.
If the church didn't cook salmonella infested food that made the deputy sick, maybe he wouldn't have left his gun there.
Yuck.
@Vince Where does it say what made him sick?  What do you have against churches? That's a pretty sad attitude towards people that are feeding those that are less fortunate.
"It's an issue of a gun, and with everybody so freaked out about guns, it really did just get blown out of proportion," Moloney told KVAL News. Better to have the issue blown out of proportion than to have a gun blow somebody's head off. Should have his name be changed to Moloney Boloney. And it's obviously safe to say this "chaparone" failed on doing his job. Good luck being asked to perform that duty again.
"It's an issue of a gun, and with everybody so freaked out about guns, it really did just get blown out of proportion," Moloney told KVAL News.
It IS a "big deal," sir. Â Guess you didn't hear of the Marysville officer Derek Carlile case - HE LOST HIS LITTLE DAUGHTER through his own carelessness VERY similar to this. Â You're just worried that your frickin' church looks bad - c'mon!
@DMTÂ Yeah just a bunch of Moloney Boloney!
I'm just happy some crook did NOT find it first. Â I wonder what kind charges would have been filed against the homeless guy IF the weapon was legally his. Â I can imagine something with the word 'reckless'____________.Â
@K. Coleman Hmm. You've figured out how to do bold and italics, is it as simple as [b] [/b] and [i] [/i]?Â
[b]test[/b]
[i]test[/i]
@lakeview Even more simple than that (since I figured it out).  Just highlight the text, click on the little 'pencil' in the lower left corner and choose your selection.  So simple even THIS caveman can do it!  :)
@Iconoclast @K. Coleman @lakeview And THANKS KOMO!
@K. Coleman @lakeviewÂ
Cool!
And it even allows:
- bullet
- points
and linksThanks for pointing this out!
Did the deputy face any punishment for leaving his gun in the bathroom? He should. If this was a civilian who would have left their gun, people would be chapping his ass. Just because it was a cop who did it doesn't make it ok.
I am all for "pro-gun" rights, but I am "anti gun-stupidity."
Sounds like Rev. Frank Moloney is a level headed fellow.
For those who think law enforcement are the only ones who should have weapons, I hope this is a wake up call for you, cops aren't magically perfect either.
of course it was the homeless guy, not the wonderful deputy/church group guy...
hypocrites.
Sounds like an honest mistake for someone who is required to carry a gun everywhere.
@Donacita Are off-duty LEO required to carry if they go to another state? Even if it is a hysterical state they will enter like New York or California?
@Iconoclast @Donacita Yes. LEOs can carry in other states. Not all states honor other states' ccw laws though which is odd given the full faith and credit clause of the US Constitution.
So what? This isn't news. The pistol didn't jump up and shoot anyone. The teenager reported it responsibly. Just stupid hysteria from the anti-firearm media.
@Iconoclast You know me, I'm no anti-firearm zealot.  I do however believe that RESPONSIBILITY COMES WITH THE PERMIT.  Since law enforcement had to be called into this matter, a renewal of the permit should come under review.  People are human and do make mistakes, I'm happy he got lucky and no harm came of this.
@K. Coleman Ever hear of no harm, no foul? A mistake was made by someone who was sick. The handgun was found and returned to the owner. Stop acting like this was another Sandy Hook.
@K. Coleman
Washington State Reckless Endangerment ChargesIf you, or someone you know, is facing a Washington state reckless endangerment charge, the government must prove the elements of that offense beyond a reasonable doubt. These elements are laid out under the Washington state criminal statutes. Reckless endangerment is a gross-misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and up to a $5000 fine. If you have any questions about the elements of the Washington state reckless endangerment charges, please feel free to contact us for a free consultation.
Revised Code of Washington StatutesBelow is the Revised Code of Washington Statutes (what the Washington State government most prove beyond a reasonable doubt to convict you of this crime and what we will defend you against):
RCW 9A.36.050 Reckless Endangerment(1) A person is guilty of reckless endangerment when he or she recklessly engages in conduct not amounting to drive-by shooting but that creates a substantial risk of death or serious physical injury to another person.
(2) Reckless endangerment is a gross misdemeanor.
There are numerous dangerous items that are accidentally left in areas that could cause harm. How many of you have left sharp kitchen knives on the counter with small children around. Lets demonize those horrible guns some more.
@lakeview @Iconoclast @K. Coleman The only reason THIS one got reported is because of the media induced hysteria against guns. Had it not been for Sandy Hook, everything would still be all mellow, drones would still be killing kids in Pakistan, and all would be hunky dory in America. BECAUSE of Sandy Hook, everyone is headhunting the guns and gun owners, trying to eliminate constitutional rights, and every time you turn the page of a newspaper, it's a NEGATIVE story about guns on the front page, while 10 stories about people using guns successfully in defense of their homes or themselves is buried along with the want ads at the back of the paper in very SMALL stories. I guess it's o.k. when the GOVERNMENT uses "assault weapons" against kids and kills them. Drones in Pakistan and Afghanistan come to mind, and also Kent State. Ring a bell? WHERE is the outrage over THESE killings? Can't be picky in THIS fight.
@Iconoclast Sir, I'll just have to respectfully disagree with you on this one.  Was this a mistake, yes.  Was there intent to cause harm?  No.  Was this reckless endangerment?  I'll leave others to decide for themselves.
Just because I can be classified as PRO-GUN, does not mean I'm in lock-step 'with the cause' if it abandons or makes excuses for the lack personal responsibility.
@K. Coleman You cannot rationally compare this mistake to driving drunk. I have yet to meet anyone who accidentally got drunk and then accidentally drove.Â
This was a mistake. The only reason this is even "news" is because KOMO and other channels are feeding the anti-firearm hysteria right now.
@Iconoclast I really am not trying to blow it out of proportion.  I'm all for peoples Constitutional Rights to carry. I must stress however that I do not believe in "No harm no foul".  That would mean it's okay to drive drunk as long as you did not kill anyone.  IT'S NOT. Â
@lakeview Very few get reported because very few have any negative outcome.Â
It's like how few traffic infractions actually cause accidents.Â
@Iconoclast @K. Coleman Crap like this is much more common than you think. You only hear about a small percentage of these incidents because very few get reported.Â
@Iconoclast It shows that responsible gun ownership is more of a myth than anything.Â
@lakeview Oh, bs. Millions of firearms are carried millions of times without any mistakes. And if this the worst example of a mistake then there is no rational reason to be so fearful.
Of course, you are not only fearful but hopeful. Hopeful you can find any excuse to eliminate a fundamental right.
@Gadsden It would be fascinating to produce a carry/hour metric. How many hours each year a loaded firearm was carried legally by anyone in the USA. Then compare that metric to the number of real accidents. I will bet the accident risk level is amazingly low.
@lakeview @Iconoclast That figure includes bad guys who are shot by police and people legally defending themselves. I know plenty of people with firearms in their homes or on their person. None of them have ever made an mistake with them.
In other breaking news hundreds of thousands, if not millions of firearms were carried legally today, and nothing happened.
Its ok. Discussions on data must always be accurate. Even lakeview can be right occasionally.
I was surprised at how few serious firearm accidents are reported each year. Given the damage any round can do, I really wonder what is included in those 8,000 incidents that do not require hospitalization. Another interesting datapoint is that there are so many people hospitalized from dog bites (5,461) while  from firearms it is only a somewhat larger  (8,000).
@Iconoclast @lakeview It's how lakeview rolls Iconclast, so let it roll off your back. He/She is part of the "We Hate Guns Club" and will only comment on stories that could lean to the ANTI gun side. When you see a PRO guns story, you won't hear a PEEP out of lakeview.
@lakeview No, you are selecting for both intentional and unintentional firearm injuries. Select for unintentional injuries. Then, under disposition, select for hospitalization/transfer (presuming that results in hospitalization). You will see how few serious unintentional injuries occur. Or select for treated/released (not requiring any sort of hospitalization) and you will see ~ 8,000Â
And even those numbers are suspect, since the accidental characterization is generally self-reported.Â
As for the 30,000 fatalities, more than half are suicides (18,000 I believe). Suicides cannot be rationally ascribed to firearms. People commit suicide regardless of availability of firearms.
Criminal misuse of firearms are also irrelevant, since there is no way to prevent criminals from acquiring firearms no matter how restrictive frightened idiots make the firearm laws. Justifiable homicide, which is also included, are positive examples of firearm use so adding those numbers to a larger number intended to somehow create the false impression that firearms are a blight is dishonest.
According to the CDC, there were 73,505 non-fatal firearm injuries in 2010.
Add to that about 30,000 fatal firearms injuries (murder, suicide) per year.
About 100,000. Â
I think you are reading the data wrong.
 http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/index.html
@lakeview CDC asserts that there were 14,000 accidental (or claimed accidental) injuries in the 2011. Of those, only 6,000 required hospitalization (or transfer to another facility).Â
In a country of 311 million people and nearly that many firearms, that is what is known as rare.
@Iconoclast @lakeview Mad bro?Â
@lakeview Comparing apples and rocks again, genius? The comment was about mistakes such as this.Â
As for your statistics, the only statistic that is relevant to this mistake is accidental shootings each year. And, when someone finds a firearm who is trained at least enough to leave it alone, nothing occurs.
@Iconoclast @lakeview I think the number is something like 100,000 firearms injuries per year when you add in murders, suicides, and accidental shootings.
Yeah...real rare...