FBI Agent Chase Bishop was charged with second-degree assault after he accidentally fired a shot that struck a bystander at a crowded bar in Colorado. From the Denver Post:
Chase Bishop, 29, has been charged with one count of second-degree assault in connection with the June 2 nightclub shooting, according to a news release from the Denver District Attorney’s Office.
Bishop turned himself in on Tuesday morning after an arrest warrant was issued by Denver police, said Maro Casparian, a spokeswoman for the Denver District Attorney’s Office…
“We are filing this charge now rather than waiting until the BAC report is received, which we understand could take another week, because sufficient evidence has been presented to file it,” McCann said. “If an additional charge needs to be filed after further evidence is received, we can file those charges then.”
Bishop was part of a dance-off at the bar and during a backflip, his concealed weapon fell out of his pants. When Bishop leaned down to pick it up, the gun went off and the bullet struck the leg of Tom Reddington. Reddington spoke to ABC News last week:
“We sat down at one of those picnic tables — I heard a loud bang and I thought some idiot set off a firecracker,” Reddington told GMA. “Then I looked down at my leg and see some brown residue … I’m still thinking it’s a firework … all of a sudden from the knee down my leg became completely red. And that’s when it clicked in my head, ‘Oh, I’ve been shot.'”
“I like stand up and like start walking in a little circle saying, ‘Hey, I think I’ve been shot. Can someone call 911?'” Reddington said…
“I blacked back in on the ground. Blacked back out. And then I woke up to a paramedic putting a tourniquet on my leg.”
Reddington says he doesn’t blame the agent for the shooting but has hired attorneys. As for Agent Bishop, if it turns out he was intoxicated at the time of the accident he’ll be fired. Even if he somehow keeps his job, his career at the FBI is probably ruined. It goes without saying that no one should be doing acrobatic moves in a crowded bar with a loaded gun in their belt.
This ABC News clip contains the video of the dancing agent clip as well as an interview with Tom Reddington:
Poster Comment:
Maybe he can get a gig on Dancing With The Stars if he doesn't end up in prison.
I’m betting no jail time... and if he does see the inside of a correctional facility, it will be a special one that already houses other ex-cops, judges or political figures.
I looked at CO statutes. This is a felony charge. I'm not sure if prison time is mandatory for a conviction or not. CO seems to be one of those states who (mistakenly) thinks mandatory minimums are the best thing. I think it's better to have a system to get rid of lenient judges rather than be forced to pass mandatory minimums.
