OUCH! Troy Officer Shoots Himself in the Foot

A Troy Police Officer accidentally shot himself in the foot yesterday.

At first, it might seem funny, but any gunshot wound is a very serious matter. According to the Times Union, a Troy Police Officer was adjusting his pants when a piece of fabric got caught in the trigger guard of his holstered pistol and that's what pulled the trigger. The weapon was holstered at the time of the accidental discharge.

Deputy Chief Daniel DeWolf said that other officers rushed to provide first aid, applying a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, and then he was taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital for treatment. There's no word on his condition. It appears that the accidental shooting occurred at a training facility at 1 Landfill Road around 2:20 pm.

This is not the first accidental discharge that has happened to a police officer there are stories all over the country of this happening. Most of the time it's a drawstring on the bottom of a jacket or pull-over that gets caught in the trigger guard and that's what is actually pulling the trigger.

Some police departments are opting to issue their officers duty pistols that have a safety on them to prevent this from happening. Here's one account of an accidental discharge that happened with a deputy in Oregon.

Here are two accounts of an accidental discharge from The Truth About Guns website.

"Deputy Steve Cooper, of the Marion County, Ore. Sheriff’s Office, accidentally shot himself in 2005 with his Glock 22. While getting out of his cruiser, the gun fired, injuring his lower right leg.
An Oregon State Police investigation cleared Cooper but blamed his windbreaker’s drawstring for getting caught in the trigger guard.
A jacket drawstring was also blamed in an accidental shooting involving a deputy in Louisiana. The deputy was using a Glock 23."

So, this might have been the same situation with this Troy officer. We'll have to wait and see after an investigation is completed. In the meantime, we wish the officer a speedy recovery.