Another stupid and tragic death.
Andrew Lawson and his roommate, Austin Walsh — both deputies with the sheriff’s office in Brevard County, Fla. — had spent Friday night at home playing “Call of Duty” when Lawson retreated to his bedroom after midnight and pulled out his Glock. When Walsh appeared in the doorway, Lawson pulled the trigger of what he thought was an empty gun, according to investigators. He did so “jokingly,” Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey said in a news conference Sunday. Though nothing happened that first time, when Lawson pulled the trigger again, a bullet was released, hitting Walsh below his right eye and killing him, according to an arrest affidavit for Lawson.
On Sunday, Lawson, 22, was arrested and charged with manslaughter in what Ivey described as an “extremely dumb” accident and a “horrible, irresponsible decision.” The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Palm Bay Police Department are investigating. Lawson has been “fully cooperative,” Ivey said. Court documents did not list an attorney for Lawson, and he did not respond to a phone message from The Washington Post on Monday night. Authorities have not said whether the weapon that killed Walsh was issued by the sheriff’s office. Walsh, 23, had worked with the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office since he was 18, first as a public safety officer and later becoming a deputy, which the sheriff said had been Walsh’s dream. He was also a member of the agency’s explorer program, an initiative that teaches young people about law enforcement.
Lawson told Palm Bay police Sgt. Lewis Jones outside his home Saturday that he’d checked to see whether the pistol was loaded before pulling its trigger, the affidavit states. Lawson also told the sergeant that he “should have known” the weapon was loaded based on its weight, according to the affidavit.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2 ... t-brevard/
I suspect alcohol and maybe drugs were involved. Another tragic loss of life by a professional who should know how to safely handle a firearm.
"Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts." - Daniel Patrick Moynihan