DC Cop's Lost Gun Used in Several Crimes

[Thor67]

I thought this was erspecially interesting since the DC powers that be don't trust citizens with guns.

This is from the Washington Post. I pulled out the parts I thought were most interesting. Here's the link to the full story:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/06/AR2006070601614.html

Gun Stolen From D.C. Officer Used In Crimes

By Allison Klein and Petula Dvorak
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, July 7, 2006; Page B01

A service weapon stolen from a D.C. police lieutenant has been tied to a spate of crimes in which at least six people, four of them teenagers, were shot in recent months, police records show.

The Glock 17 was stolen in January from Lt. Teresa Brown, who is serving a 30-day suspension for being careless with her firearm. Ballistics tests have linked the gun to at least three shooting incidents and a robbery, police said.

Brown filed a report in January saying the gun was stolen from her desk in the 4th District police station in Northwest Washington. Police lost track of the weapon until last month -- when it was discovered by authorities investigating the escape of two inmates from the D.C. jail.

Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey said Brown is not a suspect in the jailbreak or any of the crimes committed with her gun. "I have no reason to doubt her word," he said . . .

Soon after the gun disappeared, the crimes began. The first took place Feb. 18, when the gun was used in a robbery . . .

Ramsey said that a police-issued gun is stolen once or twice a year and that stolen guns are usually involved in other crimes. "In fact, it would've been unusual if we had not been able to link it to something," Ramsey said

Ramsey said officers are supposed to keep their guns with them at all times or in a secure location. The chief said he is not changing departmental security policies because of the theft of Brown's gun.

He said he is unsure whether the department will be able learn how Brown's gun ended up as a weapon in so many crimes. "We may never know," he said.

 

[Chris]

"We may never know," he said.

After all, we're just the police, why would we have a clue as to how criminals operate?

 

[SiameseRat]

Nice. Makes me want to beat my head against a wall...

DC's finest? Pteh!

 

[Len-2A Training]

From just this information, it's hard to draw any conclusion that she really did anything wrong.

Brown filed a report in January saying the gun was stolen from her desk in the 4th District police station in Northwest Washington.

If this desk is in a secure area that non-LEOs don't have access to, this would not have been an unusual "storage" situation.

If she had to go into the lockup area of the station, she may well have left the gun in her desk.

My late chief (good guy) used to have a loaded .357 in his desk drawer. This was in addition to whatever he was wearing.

I've "secured" officers weapons while they were booking prisoners by placing it on the shelf in the dispatch area (secured area).

[ALL of my examples were way before the 1998 MA gun laws were passed.]

If another officer stole the gun out of her desk, they have some serious problems there that need addressing.

Like I said, not enough info to draw any intelligent conclusions.

 

[SiameseRat]

From just this information, it's hard to draw any conclusion that she really did anything wrong.



If this desk is in a secure area that non-LEOs don't have access to, this would not have been an unusual "storage" situation.

If she had to go into the lockup area of the station, she may well have left the gun in her desk.

My late chief (good guy) used to have a loaded .357 in his desk drawer. This was in addition to whatever he was wearing.

I've "secured" officers weapons while they were booking prisoners by placing it on the shelf in the dispatch area (secured area).

[ALL of my examples were way before the 1998 gun laws were passed.]

If another officer stole the gun out of her desk, they have some serious problems there that need addressing.

Like I said, not enough info to draw any intelligent conclusions.

So you don't put any merit in:

The Glock 17 was stolen in January from Lt. Teresa Brown, who is serving a 30-day suspension for being careless with her firearm

?

I understand your point of reserving judgment without all the facts, but if the situation were reversed and it was one of us who had "lost" our firearm which was subsequently used for a string of robberies and shootings the repercussions would be life-altering. I think that it is an officer's responsibilty to not only enforce the law, but follow it. And she didn't. Otherwise she'd still have her gun.

 

[Len-2A Training]

SR,

Most PDs are "secure areas" (at least most of the building) with restricted access.

This was DC, not MA, so MA-type storage laws don't apply.

It is common practice for LEOs to lock up their guns when they go to the booking/cellblock area. Civilians don't usually have these kind of "accommodations" in their place of work. So an analogy to normal folks/normal workplaces is not appropriate here.

Suspending officers these days is a "PC" way of dealing with things, but all I'm saying is that more info is needed to make any intelligent determination of what happened and how it cold have been done better/differently.

Some examples that come to mind:

- Securing gun to go to cellblock area is OK in my mind.
- Securing gun because "you're in the station and don't need it" is NOT OK in my mind and deserving of the suspension.
- Was the desk lockable? Did she lock it? Did someone jimmy the lock open to steal it (most desk locks only require a paperclip)? Lots of unanswered questions here!