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A McLennan County prosecutor who shot out a window in the district attorney’s offices Monday while admiring a colleague’s new gun may face disciplinary action, District Attorney Abel Reyna said.
First Assistant District Attorney Michael Jarrett said he asked fellow prosecutor Landon Ramsay if he could see Ramsay’s new Glock .40-caliber pistol about 2 p.m. Monday.
Jarrett said he asked Ramsay if the gun was loaded and was told it was not. Jarrett pulled back the slide, he said, to double-check if it was loaded and didn’t see a bullet slide into the chamber.
He aimed the gun at a window in Ramsay’s office and pulled the trigger. The bullet shattered the window and struck the brick exterior of the adjacent vacant downtown county jail, Jarrett and McLennan County Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Matt Cawthon said.
No one was injured, which Jarrett said was because he was careful to point the pistol out the window at a brick wall.
“I was being extremely safe,” Jarrett said. “I inspected the gun even after I was told it was not loaded, but it was just an unfortunate accident.”
Reyna said he was out of the office when Jarrett fired the gun, adding he still is in the process of interviewing those involved.
“It’s absolutely unacceptable behavior in my office,” Reyna said. “I am thankful that no one was hurt, but it doesn’t change the fact that I am extremely angry about it, and I will deal with it accordingly by disciplinary action or by implementation of policy, or both.”
Cawthon said sheriff’s investigators Steve Janics and James Pack went to the DA’s office, located in the courthouse annex, to investigate the incident.
Jarrett said he and Ramsay both are licensed to carry concealed weapons and have been through certification courses.
Reyna said despite the incident, “My prosecutors will remain armed in light of what happened in Kaufman County.”
Kaufman County prosecutor Mark Hasse was shot and killed outside the Kaufman County Courthouse on Jan. 31, and Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, were killed in their home March 30.
Former Kaufman County Justice of the Peace Eric Williams is charged with capital murder in their deaths.
First Assistant District Attorney Michael Jarrett said he asked fellow prosecutor Landon Ramsay if he could see Ramsay’s new Glock .40-caliber pistol about 2 p.m. Monday.
Jarrett said he asked Ramsay if the gun was loaded and was told it was not. Jarrett pulled back the slide, he said, to double-check if it was loaded and didn’t see a bullet slide into the chamber.
He aimed the gun at a window in Ramsay’s office and pulled the trigger. The bullet shattered the window and struck the brick exterior of the adjacent vacant downtown county jail, Jarrett and McLennan County Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Matt Cawthon said.
No one was injured, which Jarrett said was because he was careful to point the pistol out the window at a brick wall.
“I was being extremely safe,” Jarrett said. “I inspected the gun even after I was told it was not loaded, but it was just an unfortunate accident.”
Reyna said he was out of the office when Jarrett fired the gun, adding he still is in the process of interviewing those involved.
“It’s absolutely unacceptable behavior in my office,” Reyna said. “I am thankful that no one was hurt, but it doesn’t change the fact that I am extremely angry about it, and I will deal with it accordingly by disciplinary action or by implementation of policy, or both.”
Cawthon said sheriff’s investigators Steve Janics and James Pack went to the DA’s office, located in the courthouse annex, to investigate the incident.
Jarrett said he and Ramsay both are licensed to carry concealed weapons and have been through certification courses.
Reyna said despite the incident, “My prosecutors will remain armed in light of what happened in Kaufman County.”
Kaufman County prosecutor Mark Hasse was shot and killed outside the Kaufman County Courthouse on Jan. 31, and Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, were killed in their home March 30.
Former Kaufman County Justice of the Peace Eric Williams is charged with capital murder in their deaths.
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