Caledonia Argus

Injured officer to return to work soon

Posted: 2/17/04

By David Heiller
Argus News Editor

Houston County Sheriffís Department Lieutenant Tracie Erickson is expected to be back on the job next week.

Erickson accidentally shot himself in the right calf on January 27 while removing his sidearm from his holster.

The accident occurred in the stairwell of the jail. Sheriffís department personnel have to put their weapons in lock boxes there before entering the jail, and Erickson was doing that when the accident happened.

An investigation by the Caledonia Police Department determined that there was nothing wrong with Ericksonís .40-caliber Glock pistol.

Erickson has already been at the office a few times, Sheriff Mike Lee said on February 13, and should be back on the job the week of February 23.

ìIt was a freak accident,î Lee said. ìHe had his gloves stuck in his belt. It either caught on his coat or his gloves We looked the gun over and thereís nothing wrong with his weapon.î

Lee said that law officers remove their guns from their holsters countless times. ìItís one of those things thatís bound to happen sooner or later,î he said.

In a way, there was amazing good fortune with the accident, Lee added. The bullet traveled straight down into his calf. Not only did it not hit any bones or an artery, it didnít even injure his muscles that bad.

After the accident happened at about 5:18 that Tuesday evening, Erickson was able to walk into the nearby dispatchersí office. He even walked back into the hallway so that he wouldnít bleed on the carpet.

Other personnel put gauze on the wound and called an ambulance. Erickson, who was hired in November of 2001, was transported to Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center in La Crosse, where doctors removed the bullet. Erickson was able to go home that night.

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