We’re told, repeatedly and forcefully, by many who would like to limit or eliminate civilian-owned firearms, that law enforcement officers are the only people with the knowledge, training and degree of responsibility necessary to be entrusted with carrying a gun. At which point gun owners immediately Google “Lee Paige” and hold their phones up for all to see. It’s as effective a comeback as any.
But while most law enforcement officers are well-trained and treat their firearms in a responsible manner, there will always be the exceptions that prove the rule. So our friends in the Civilian Disarmament Industrial Complex will have to forgive us if we choose to highlight them when they come up. Today’s example is Nye County, Nevada Sheriff Sharon Wehrly.
The sheriff had stopped for lunch at Saddle West casino after the Nye County Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday, she said. When she went to the bathroom, she unholstered her gun.
Because, she said, she wasn’t wearing a gun belt. When she then got a phone call, it apparently distracted her enough that she left the handgun behind when she was finished.
A Saddle West employee found the gun and gave it to management. Wehrly was without the weapon for about 10 minutes, she said.
Wehrly realized she left the gun behind when got to the casino’s cafe, she said.
The Sheriff apparently has an election coming up this fall and felt it appropriate to issue a video apology which you can see here. She noted that gun security “had always been paramount” and that she’s been a firearms instructor since she was 31 years old.
“So I understand the magnitude of my (indiscretion). This is a political year, and I understand that. But talking to non-political people, I want to tell you that I really apologize for walking away from my firearm, and that’s all I can do, is to say it was a mistake and I’m human and I ask for your forgiveness.”
Apology accepted? Maybe she should have taken TTAG’s advice?