NOTE: Video included of the actual incident....


"Montville officer’s weapon discharges during arrest"

https://www.wfsb.com/2023/07/2...#lkmhj7ejtyc8bddb7wp

By Luke Hajdasz
Published: Jul. 27, 2023 at 6:42 PM EDT|Updated: 17 hours ago
MONTVILLE, CT (WFSB) - The city of Montville’s police chief is taking quick action to keep the community and his officers safe after a duty weapon spontaneously discharged Monday.

It happened at approximately 9:01 a.m. in the public safety headquarters lobby.

“There’s nothing,” Chief Wilfred Blanchette III said. “No manipulation of the firearm, not anything that would have caused it to discharge.”

Officers were arresting a man who entered the lobby to request an incident report. While he was waiting, Zachary Barbarossa, of Norwich, attempted to remove prescription drugs from a drop box in the lobby.

While he was being arrested, Blanchette says Barbarossa become combative. When an officer went to lift Barbarossa’s legs, the 9mm gun fired. No one was hurt.

“We initially thought there had to have been something that caused that discharge,” Blanchette said. “It was eye opening.”

The handgun was made by Sig Sauer.

“An accident like this, it’s really just a freak thing,” Eugene Zaklukiewicz of Deep River said.

Not long after the incident, Chief Blanchette ordered new Glocks for the entire force.

“Every single one of the sidearms issued to officers here is being replaced,” Blanchette said. “We’re going to a Glock platform now.”

That replacement cost the department about $20,000 and equates to 35 guns.

This incident is not the first time something like this has happened. Similar instances have been reported in Maine and Milwaukee. Sig Sauer is facing a lawsuit related to the spontaneous discharges.

“After doing a little bit of research, we found obviously this was a platform that we can no longer use,” Blanchette said.

The bullet hit the wall of the lobby. The gun was sent to a state forensics lab to be inspected.

“I’m seeing new safety devices out every day,” Zaklukiewicz said. “I think people are still getting hurt.”

Barbarossa is charged with possession of a controlled substance, criminal mischief in the third degree and interfering with an officer.

Copyright 2023 WFSB. All rights reserved.

Wow the officer standing behind him was very lucky...

Difficult to see if anything was in the holster with the dark uniforms and the one officer that steps in the way.

My money's on the holster (or something in it that shouldn't be) as the issue...Just Sayin'

I see they didn't say they sent the holster to the lab, just the gun. Sounds stupid.

Just the video without all the extra crap.

Suppose they'd found an acorn or something in the holster, or maybe a cracked/damaged plastic part in the holster?

What should the department do then?
Keep the P320's but replace everyone's holsters?

^^^Maybe, it's hard to say, but they DO need to look at the Holster! If you look at the video a half speed, it appears that the legs of the 'suspect' are right next to the RDS Hood on the Holster when the Accidental Discharge occurs. The Officer is bent over lifting his legs and there could have been contact with the suspects legs and the Holster/RDS Hood. If the fit of the Pistol in the Holster is sloppy, such an impact could have rocked the Pistol back potentially causing the Trigger to be depressed.

I'd have to question if the Holster is designed/tested for compatibility/safety with that exact RDS and Weapon light combination. How well it fits, and if it's if perfect working order are critical factors.

I have a hard time believing that the Pistol discharged w/o the Trigger being depressed.

I can see a small white object at discharge, fly to his rear and to the floor. Perhaps a internal segment of his holster?

Article says the department is getting Glocks.

They have that little tab thingy on the trigger, y'know.

Partially-cocked striker, too.

My M17 hasn't discharged by itself in the 3 years I've owned it! When I purchased it, there was paperwork stating that it had been revamped for this condition......

Looks like the only things involved are the pistol and the holster. Testing just one of them in isolation from the other is Wiley Coyote-level stupid.

Many people on this forum have written about their "box of holsters", created in the search for the right holster for a particular person, belt, and firearm combination. If it's not right, it's tossed in the box and a different holster is tried. How many holsters did this police officer try before settling on the one used? Is it mandated by the department? Is it even designed for this firearm? If this holster was a poor choice, will the next holster/firearm be better?

Any one of us having a discharge like the one in this video would look long and hard at everything involved. It seems to me that the Montville police department isn't being as thorough as that.

quote:

Originally posted by whanson_wi:
Looks like the only things involved are the pistol and the holster. Testing just one of them in isolation from the other is Wiley Coyote-level stupid.

I just don't see it that way.

If the P320 is that susceptible to holster malfunctions, then Chief Blanchette was on the right track, but stopped just short of perfection.


Replacing the 320's with DAK Sigs, or even better, 4" DA only 8-shot N frame revolvers, with appropriate training, would have been optimal.


In my oh, so humble opinion.

The results of the investigation could take months. If they keep the firearm and holster in the meantime and something happens again, what then? Is it the gun? Is it the holster? They need to be armed.
Switching to Glocks is an option to rearm the force for now. What they decide in the future...

It does seem like these incidents occur with the P320 in a retention holster. Once again I...

Oh, never mind.

In the meantime, Chief Blanchette has the option to post in the "You Will Buy a Glock" thread.

This guy comes on a little strong but he does a good breakdown of this Montville ND/AD incident.
Suffer through it and look at the still photos and the slo-mo.
I believe that all of his points on this incident are spot on.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCWyFH0P2LA

I’ve only watched it on my phone, can anyone identify the holster? If it’s a Safariland for weapon light, I don’t see how the holster could discharge the pistol.

quote:

Originally posted by DirectDrive:
This guy comes on a little strong but he does a good breakdown of this Montville ND/AD incident.

He seems to make a good point about the position of the pistol in the holster before and after the discharge, but, “It’s negligence for a police officer to wrestle with an arrestee while wearing a holstered gun”‽

That is beyond ridiculous.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:
“It’s negligence for a police officer to wrestle with an arrestee while wearing a holstered gun”‽

That is beyond ridiculous.

Yeah

Is it me, or are the multiple different holsters worn by the Officers in that video. I believe I'm seeing three different holsters there...