Caledonia Argus

Lieutenant injures leg in accidental shooting at jail

Posted: 2/3/04

By David Heiller
Argus News Editor

A Houston County Sheriffís Department lieutenant is recovering from an accidental, self-inflicted gunshot wound on January 27.

Lt. Tracie Erickson shot himself in the right calf when he was removing his .40-caliber Glock pistol from its holster at 5:18 that Wednesday afternoon. The accident occurred in the stairwell of the jail.

Sheriffís department personnel are required to lock their weapons in a locker before entering the jail on the east side of the sheriffís department building. Erickson was in the process of doing that when the gun went off. The bullet went straight down and lodged in his calf.

Erickson was able to walk into the dispatchersí office, which is about seven paces away. He then walked back to the hallway so he wouldnít bleed on the carpet. The dispatcher and a jailer put gauze on the wound and called an ambulance.

Erickson was transported to Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center in La Crosse, where doctors removed the bullet. Erickson was able to go home that night.

The accident is being investigated by the Caledonia Police Department to avoid a conflict of interest. Sheriff Lee said he had no idea how the accident happened, but he speculated that the gun could have caught in Ericksonís coat while he was removing it, or the gun could have malfunctioned.

ìIíve never seen a gun misfire ever, and Iíve been here 25 years,î Lee said. He added that Erickson is well-trained with firearms.

Erickson was ìreal luckyî because the bullet could have hit the knee or an artery, Lee said. Itís unclear how long Erickson, a two year veteran on the department, will be off work.

ìIím just glad that heís not injured real serious.î Lee said. ìMy biggest fear is my deputies getting hurt, and one of them got hurt.î

Caledonia City Police Officer Jim Logan said on February 2 that he was not done with his report yet so could not comment on the accident.

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