Cop, drunk and off-duty, left loaded gun on sidewalk...

[rfranklin]

Should this man be allowed to carry a gun?

Officials: Chatham cop,
drunk and off-duty, left
loaded gun out on sidewalk

By PEGGY WRIGHT • STAFF WRITER • March 12,
2010

Chatham Borough police Sgt. Roy George is facing
department disciplinary charges for allegedly
leaving a backpack containing a loaded handgun on
a sidewalk in Westfield after a night of drinking last
fall.

Westfield police got a call at 11 p.m. on Oct. 12
about an intoxicated person walking around Elm
Street. This person, later identified as Roy George of
Clark, was released to the care of a responsible
adult, a Westfield police spokesman said Thursday.

The following morning, Oct. 13, at 7:20 a.m., police
got a call from a resident of Sinclair Place in
Westfield. The caller said he found a backpack on
the sidewalk in front of his home that contained a
handgun and identification. Inside the pack, police
discovered police credentials belonging to Roy
George, 34, of the Chatham police department and a
loaded, .45-caliber handgun.

Chatham police were contacted. Westfield police did
not file any charges against George for allegedly l
eaving the loaded gun on residential Sinclair Place,
which intersects with Elm Street.

The incident never was publicly reported by any law
enforcement agency, but Westfield police responded
to an inquiry for details made this week by the Daily
Record.

http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20100312/COMMUNITIES/100311074/1203

[DesertFlower]

1. Jesus H. Christ. nt

[Glassunion]

19. No. "Sgt. Roy George"

That other guy was not there.

[pipoman]

2. Probably not, yet there are a bunch of fools on DU who want ONLY police to have guns..

[shadowrider]

3. You beat me to it

[sharesunited]

4. Was this his service revolver?

If it was not his service revolver and instead a personal gun, it just goes to support the argument AGAINST guns in the hands of the general public.

[shadowrider]

5. And if it was his service weapon?

He's still an idiot and he's a police officer, whether or not he's on duty. You'd punish the general public because of the actions of one drunk off duty cop? Oh, wait....

[sharesunited]

7. If it was his service revolver

it belongs back at the station under lock and key at the end of his shift.

[PavePusher]

24. What police forces still use revolvers?

Damn, you really are out of touch all around, aren't you?

Edit: And why do you want a police officer, very likely to be targeted by criminals, to be disarmed when off duty? You seem to be intent on creating victims. Why do you hate people so much?

[Glassunion]

31. There are a few that still user revolvers.

Not many, but there are some. I was at my local sherriff's dept, most of the deputies had pistols, but 2 of them had revolvers.

Just saying.

[PavePusher]

36. O.K., I stand corrected. n/t

[Merchant Marine]

38. I remember when I visited Panama all the cops carried these hefty .357s

That was the first time I saw a genuine AKM "in the wild", so to speak.

[rrneck]

6. So

if it was his personal firearm he becomes somebody else?

HOLY FUCK! CERTAIN GUNS EMBOLDEN PEOPLE TO BECOME POLICE OFFICERS! WHO KNEW?

[sharesunited]

8. Does he wear a badge when he is off duty?

Off duty, he's a civilian.

Come on, this is simple stuff.

[X_Digger]

9. So if he sees a crime when off duty, fuck them, eh?

Hey, he's a civilian, right? Too bad, so sad, eh?

Disgusting.

[sharesunited]

11. Strive for consistency and refer to the original post.

Off duty and drunk was not the problem.

Armed was the problem.

[shadowrider]

10. Cops are never off duty

And will respond to bad guys if need be, even if off duty, as police officers.

[pipoman]

12. Off duty or on duty he is a "civilian"...THIS is simple stuff..

[shadowrider]

15. So all those people on DU who insist

Only police should have guns, that argument doesn't hold water because, after all, they're civilians???

Why call them then when you have an emergency if they're civilians? HINT: They have guns and can take care of the bad guy, IF it isn't already too late when they get there. (Which is why I carry).

[pipoman]

18. The word civilian

has been a bit bastardized over the years. The traditional meaning is non-military. Our police are expressly non-military..they are civilians...correct me if I'm wrong paulsby..

[PavePusher]

25. In the eyes of this military member, you are entirely correct. n/t

[oneshooter]

13. Maybe in your world

In Texas a law enforcement officer is concidered on duty 24-7. He carries his badge, ID card and weapon with him at all times.

Case in point: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100307/ap_on_bi_ge/us_walmart_shooting;_ylt=Ap5BFqBTPdNoqxrNd0Yb_PAUewgF;_ylu=X3oDMTM4N2hrMGdiBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwMzA3L3VzX3dhbG1hcnRfc2hvb3RpbmcEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwM0BHBvcwM0BHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcmllcwRzbGsDc3VzcGVjdGVkZ3Vu

"Cunningham said an off-duty officer from another agency was in the store and saw the man leave. The officer tried to stop the suspect in front of the store, where the officer and Commerce police exchanged gunfire with the man."

The laws and custom vary between states, counties, and citys.
If you don't know, then find out. The internutz is a great source of information.

Oneshooter
Armed and Livin in Texas

[sharesunited]

14. Well when does he get drunk then?

[shadowrider]

16. Cops are people too and need to blow off steam

He shouldn't have had the weapon, even in a backpack, if he was going to get blitzed and for that he should be suspended and/or fired.

[rrneck]

17. Yeah, it is simple stuff.

The officer is the same person no how matter how he is equipped. He has the same training, the same life experiences, the same brain, the same body and the same shoes. He is the same person whether on duty or off. If you can't trust him off duty with a firearm, you can't trust him while he's on the clock.

My dog could figure that out. Of course my dog isn't trying to assert that an inanimate object is responsible for people's actions.

Duh.

[cowman]

20. Geeez Shares

do you even live in this country? A police officer is technically on duty 24/7, all of my police buddies carry their guns and badges even when not on the job. Before you open your pie hole, know what you are talking about

[sharesunited]

21. I ask again, when are they supposed to get drunk? Was that his service revolver?

And why is the situation described in the original post a natural source of outrage?

[oneshooter]

22. They can get drunk off duty.

But are not allowed into bars armed in Texas. Unless they are working security, in which case they are in uniform and can not drink.

The 45 was probably a 45 automatic, such as a 1911 style.

Oneshooter
Armed and Livin in Texas

[sharesunited]

23. Personal gun. Service revolver back at the station under lock and key at the end of his shift.

[oneshooter]

26. It is his personally owned service weapon. n/t

[sharesunited]

27. Just like Nidal Hasan's.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nidal_Malik_Hasan

[oneshooter]

28. NO Hasans pistol was personally owned

But was not a duty weapon. Had he been issued a weapon it would have been a 9mm Beretta. Standard US Army issue.

Oneshooter
Armed and Livin in Texas

[Merchant Marine]

29. You are out of touch

All cops use modern semiautomatic babykillers, designed specifically for convenient, efficient mass murder.

Most of their issue guns are even black! D:

[one-eyed fat man]

30. that depends on the jurisdiction

Kentucky constitutional peace officers are by law duty bound to attempt to affect an arrest anywhere in the Commonwealth if a felony is committed in their presence.

The police only have arrest powers within their jurisdiction. Policemen from most incorporated cities are authorized arrest powers, both on and off duty, in uniform and out.

Being a cop is not like driving a cab, they don't just punch off the clock and go home. So no, it's not that simple. He's not just a civilian unless the laws make it so.

But apparently you're from Chicago or thereabouts. There's a department with a fine tradition. They watched sheepishly as Alphonse Capone kicked the Mayor down the steps of City Hall.

Has there ever been a city more flamboyantly corrupt than Chicago?

Casablanca? Hong Kong? Shanghai? Marseilles?

[Callisto32]

33. Police are civilians.

They enforce civil law, not the UCMJ.....

[Callisto32]

32. Wait, he's somehow instantly stupider with his own guns than with an issue weapon?

....Funniest post in weeks.

[armueller2001]

34. Well, a police officer's personal weapon

has not been blessed and ordained by the magical "cannot do harm" fairy and therefore they still emit those powerful mind rays which control people and make them kill babies or go on shooting rampages.

[SteveM]

35. Headline suggests the gun was drunk, too. Must have had a spat. nt

[Nailzberg]

37. Well, then, he's irresponsible and should have been charged like anyone else.

I'm a big supporter of the law enforcement community; I'm from a public service family, my dad was a firefighter and my brother was a Fed. And in my career as a cameraman, I worked breaking news overnights, which is basically all fires and police action. I knew half the police officers and firemen in the city, so I've lived with it my whole life. People in public service aren't magical Gods, they are flawed human beings. And they should be accountable for their mistakes. This guy showed some bad judgment, and should have bought a couple weeks off for it.

But that being said, I don't see how it relates to my right to bear arms. This guy is a cop, he'd be an exception to gun control laws even in a gun-control paradise like Chicago. Restricting my rights doesn't change this outcome.


And if a certain police officer can't be responsible, it begs the question, why do people insist I trust the police to protect me? The Declaration of Independence is clear about the unalienable rights to Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness. 2A gives me the right to protect myself, to ensure those unalienable rights.