Chaffee2
02-11-2008, 20:21
I've been to Jerry's shop many times. Very nice guy and a well run shop.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/200..._shooting.html?imw=Y
One injured in accidental shooting in sporting goods store
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Saturday, February 09, 2008
The victim of an accidental shooting in a sporting goods store Saturday morning was in serious condition Saturday night after afternoon surgery at St. Mary’s Hospital, according to Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Heather Benjamin.
Kenny Franklin, who works at Jerry’s Outdoor Sports at 507 Road 30 in Grand Junction, was shot in the abdomen, according to family and friends at the scene.
The Mesa County Sheriff’s Department said the wound was caused by a .243-caliber rifle. A customer brought the rifle into the store, and it was being examined by an employee and the customer when it discharged, Mesa County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Heather Benjamin said.
“There was a bullet in the chamber he forgot about,” Benjamin said. “An employee walked past the counter at the moment he dislodged the bullet. He took a bullet to the abdomen. I don’t know that they knew there was a bullet in the chamber until it actually went off.”
Deputies took one man in for questioning and were interviewing six people inside the store after the incident, Benjamin said.
Family members of the wounded employee were embracing outside the store an hour after the incident. They said they did not want to comment to the media.
Store co-owner Jerry Stehman said the store’s policy is “every gun should be checked before it’s worked on, and it is checked.” Jerry’s Outdoor Sports has been in business for 22 1/2 years, he said.
“This is truly an accident,” Stehman said. “There is absolutely no bad intentions or malice intended. I’ve just been through so many emotions; it’s just been devastating to me that it happened.”
Stehman said he expects Franklin, who is in his 50s, will make a full recovery.
Business owners in the area said the gun may have been brought to the store in pieces.
“They were servicing or cleaning it,” said Felipe Leon, owner of Leon’s Taqueria Restaurant, a business next door to Jerry’s Outdoor Sports. “I heard they closed the gun, and it shot him right in the side.”
Leon said he saw Franklin being put in an ambulance.
“It’s crazy, just a freak accident, something you wouldn’t think would happen,” said Debbie Birely, manager at nearby Cornerstone Thrift Store.
Jerry’s Outdoor Sports was closed during the investigation.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blog...unty_police_chi.html
Former Delta County police chief named as weekend accidental shooter
The Mesa County Sheriff’s Department has released a few more details about the accidental shooting that happened over the weekend at Jerry’s Outdoor Sports store in Grand Junction, and a former area police chief and police officer was named as the accidental shooter.
Richard Bacher, 56, of Grand Junction was apparently working on a .243-caliber rifle brought to the shop by a Loma man, when the gun discharged. A single bullet struck Kenny Franklin, 53, of Grand Junction, in the abdomen. Franklin was walking past the gun at the time of the accident.
Franklin remains in St. Mary’s Hospital after weekend surgery.
Investigators say an investigation into the incident is ongoing, and they expect to complete it within a couple of weeks.
Bacher served as police chief with the Delta police department for a little more than a year, resigning from the job in September. Bacher also worked on patrol with the Grand Junction Police Department from October 1976 through September 2002.
— Sentinel staff
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/200..._shooting.html?imw=Y
One injured in accidental shooting in sporting goods store
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Saturday, February 09, 2008
The victim of an accidental shooting in a sporting goods store Saturday morning was in serious condition Saturday night after afternoon surgery at St. Mary’s Hospital, according to Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Heather Benjamin.
Kenny Franklin, who works at Jerry’s Outdoor Sports at 507 Road 30 in Grand Junction, was shot in the abdomen, according to family and friends at the scene.
The Mesa County Sheriff’s Department said the wound was caused by a .243-caliber rifle. A customer brought the rifle into the store, and it was being examined by an employee and the customer when it discharged, Mesa County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Heather Benjamin said.
“There was a bullet in the chamber he forgot about,” Benjamin said. “An employee walked past the counter at the moment he dislodged the bullet. He took a bullet to the abdomen. I don’t know that they knew there was a bullet in the chamber until it actually went off.”
Deputies took one man in for questioning and were interviewing six people inside the store after the incident, Benjamin said.
Family members of the wounded employee were embracing outside the store an hour after the incident. They said they did not want to comment to the media.
Store co-owner Jerry Stehman said the store’s policy is “every gun should be checked before it’s worked on, and it is checked.” Jerry’s Outdoor Sports has been in business for 22 1/2 years, he said.
“This is truly an accident,” Stehman said. “There is absolutely no bad intentions or malice intended. I’ve just been through so many emotions; it’s just been devastating to me that it happened.”
Stehman said he expects Franklin, who is in his 50s, will make a full recovery.
Business owners in the area said the gun may have been brought to the store in pieces.
“They were servicing or cleaning it,” said Felipe Leon, owner of Leon’s Taqueria Restaurant, a business next door to Jerry’s Outdoor Sports. “I heard they closed the gun, and it shot him right in the side.”
Leon said he saw Franklin being put in an ambulance.
“It’s crazy, just a freak accident, something you wouldn’t think would happen,” said Debbie Birely, manager at nearby Cornerstone Thrift Store.
Jerry’s Outdoor Sports was closed during the investigation.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blog...unty_police_chi.html
Former Delta County police chief named as weekend accidental shooter
The Mesa County Sheriff’s Department has released a few more details about the accidental shooting that happened over the weekend at Jerry’s Outdoor Sports store in Grand Junction, and a former area police chief and police officer was named as the accidental shooter.
Richard Bacher, 56, of Grand Junction was apparently working on a .243-caliber rifle brought to the shop by a Loma man, when the gun discharged. A single bullet struck Kenny Franklin, 53, of Grand Junction, in the abdomen. Franklin was walking past the gun at the time of the accident.
Franklin remains in St. Mary’s Hospital after weekend surgery.
Investigators say an investigation into the incident is ongoing, and they expect to complete it within a couple of weeks.
Bacher served as police chief with the Delta police department for a little more than a year, resigning from the job in September. Bacher also worked on patrol with the Grand Junction Police Department from October 1976 through September 2002.
— Sentinel staff