Sure and begorrah, there’s somethin’ more to the story ol’ Sarge Flaherty of the Quincy, Mass. PD is tellin’ than meets the eye. Officer Brian just installed a new ventilation system in his prowler. But how he supposedly did it pegs the needle on our blarney detector way up at eleven. “According to police, Sergeant Brian Flaherty was inside a cruiser at the Police Department Parking Lot on Monday at 7:20 a.m. when he leaned back and accidentally hit the trigger of the shotgun attached to the ceiling, causing the weapon to discharge. The bullet went through the window of the car, but did not hit anyone.” Yeah, those shotgun bullets can be the damnedest things . . .
According to Mrs. Dougan’s boy Johnny – the Quincy captain – “officers are supposed to have the safety on and guns are not supposed to have a bullet in the chamber. Guns also are supposed to be checked at the beginning and end of each shift to ensure proper protocols are followed.” So there’s a training session or two in the Quincy rank and file’s future.
But Cap’n Dougan’s letting the Sarge skate on this one. He “will not face any disciplinary action for the event. The window repair can be done at the police station and won’t cost anything, police said.” Wouldn’t you love to know who replaces squad car windows for free. Such a deal!
But it only seems right that Bri should be recognized properly. And as such, we’ll be sending him our IGOTD award so everyone in Quincy knows of his achievement. Just like the new window in his cruiser, he’ll get it free of charge.
Where do you get free glass, or labor? And that PO breaks enough windows that they have the tools to replace them in their station? If anyone wants to ask them how try emailing [email protected], I did.
It comes from the taxpayer, ergo it’s free. At least in the blue state of Massachusetts.
In Massachusetts, windshield replacement is a mandatory part of the insurance you are required to carry.
It’s not “free”, but it is already factored into the cost of the insurance premium.
Rich, it’s not mandatory in MA. Liability insurance is mandatory. Comprehensive is not. Under MA law, your insurance company is required to let you purchase windshield replacement insurance with no deductible if you have comprehensive insurance on your vehicle.
Actually, it wouldn’t surprise me if a moderately busy PD has the tools and materials on hand to replace a cruiser window. They get kicked out (from the inside) often enough that it’s probably a routine maintenance item.
How does a windshield get kicked out from the inside? I can understand the rear window and rear door glass, but not the windshield.
No one said it was the windshield–they said window. And given the limited amount of spece between the header and the screen to the back seat, I think it was probably mounted side to side, not back to front.
The auto techs at the station will get a window from an adjacent patrol car that has been torpedoed by a drunk driver or soccer mom on a cell phone. The techs are already on the pay roll, so it will essentially be free.
Were the incident to go down under my supervision, I’d recommend a suspension without pay and a re-qualification prior to a return to duty.
Do smaller police station have their own mechanics? That city is about 90k people, and a PD of about 200 people total including admin staff. I know Chicago has a fleet maintenance department, I just didnt know a PD that small would have it own, or would out source it to a local mechanic.
That would be a reasonable recommendation, Accur81, but could you make it stick once the officer files his grievance?
Uh…maybe.
It depends on how good his or her representation is.
This is and was one of the MANY reasons I moved away from TAX-A-TWO-SHITS..
The cost of replacement should at the very least come out of his paycheck.
I work in a bodyshop and I can assure you that door glass is FREE and self installing on the new environmentally friendly cruisers!
door glass would be one thing, but i’m pretty sure this was a windshield.
Hey, don’t be hating on
Officer KrupkeOl’ Sarge. The gun just went off. By itself. It happens all the time. And those shotgun bullets are pretty sneaky.Shotgun bullet?!
The PD must have got the shotgun from the same manufacture as the guns that accidentally go off shooting someone. Well everyone has a bad day. Sgt. Start the day off with a Starbucks to get you going.
I’ve lived in the Detroit area and down in northern Florida for most of my life, and have never seen a shotgun in a squad car attached to the roof. I’ve only seen the center consol esque vertical holder. Is there a roof shotgun carrier or is this a wierd typo? Also, if the officer were simply “leaning back” as the report says, what on earth got caught in the trigger of a roof mounted shotgun?
PA State Police had Remington SA in a roof rack, basically right above their head. The release switch was right around the grip area so it would literally deop into your hands
“Some people don’t understand and think anybody can get a license to carry, and that’s not true,” said Quincy police Capt. Anthony DiBona, the department’s licensing officer. He said that while obtaining an FID card is a constitutional right, “a license to carry is not a right. It’s strictly a privilege.”
http://www.patriotledger.com/answerbook/braintree/x760605076/More-people-getting-gun-permits-across-South-Shore#ixzz1xPyONPBK
” . . . guns are not supposed to have a bullet in the chamber.”
So, he WAS following the rules. In fact, it sounds like he stuck a shell in there so nobody could slip a bullet in when he wasn’t looking.
Above and beyond . . .
“So, he WAS following the rules. In fact, it sounds like he stuck a shell in there so nobody could slip a bullet in when he wasn’t looking.”
Heh, Heh! – But now that I think about it, I wouldn’t put it past them actually trying that line; cops will stop at NOTHING in covering each other’s (very fat) a–es and avoiding responsibility and punishment for whatever they do, even if their idiocy (or even malice) results in innocent people’s (and pet’s) deaths. Sickening as usual.
After 30 years of law enforcement, I can attest to the fact that the daily check in, check out, loading, unloading of a shotgun from an armory and putting it in a car is the source of frequent negligent discharges. There is almost no way for the task to become other than routine, which is dangerous. The solution is for patrol cars to be parked in a secure location or assigned to individual officers who can leave their equipment in place, inspect it to confirm it has remained in condition 3 (loaded magazine, chamber empty, hammer or striker down), barrel unobstructed, ammunition checked for serviceability and then secured again.
Running ammo through the gun is dangerous, very few unload a long shotgun properly.
The cop will be filing for medical disability caused by hearing loss as a result. Either way we’ll be paying for this as taxpayers.
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