The circumstances under which the gun carried by the retired LBPD Sergeant was accidentally discharged aren't clear from LBPD's release (text below) which indicates that a thorough investigation follows anytime a firearm is discharged in public and says it has collected the gun and booked it into evidence,

"When officers arrived on scene, they learned that a male adult customer inside the business had accidentally discharged a handgun, striking himself in the lower extremity," LBPD states in its June 27 release. "Long Beach Fire Department paramedics transported the man to a local hospital for treatment of his non-life threatening injury. No one else was injured during the incident, and a handgun located at the scene was collected and booked into evidence." .

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LBPD's June 27 release states: "The subject involved in the incident was identified as a retired LBPD Sergeant, Jeffrey Garcia, a 54-year-old resident of Long Beach. Garcia was recently named in an earlier story [LBPD June 25 statement, below] regarding a separate investigation into threats made against a known journalist [Mr. King.] At this time, it is not believed that this incident [the accidental weapon discharge] is related to that investigation."

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Within hours of Mr. King's story appearing on Medium.com, LBPD issued a June 25 statement indicating that it submitted information regarding the social network statements to LBPD's Investigations Bureau for further review and recommendations regarding a criminal investigation and, "based on the totality of the circumstances," LBPD has "requested and will receive assistance from the FBI on this matter."

LBPD's June 25 statement added that the department "is appalled and deeply disturbed by the tone and content of the posts which in no way reflect the core values and professional standards held by the men and women in our organization. We are 100% committed to working in partnership with our community to ensure that all people are treated with respect and professionalism and will not tolerate any bias, racism, or threats to individuals."

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LBPD's June 27 release adds: "Both the preliminary and subsequent investigations for this incident will be thoroughly evaluated, just as it would for any other member of the public. While the Department does not typically release detailed information regarding this type of incident, information is being released in a proactive effort to ensure openness within our community."

LBPD's June 27 release asks anyone with information regarding the incident to contact LBPD Homicide Detail at (562) 570-7244. Anonymous tips may be submitted through "LA Crime Stoppers" by calling 800-222-TIPS (8477), downloading the "P3 Tips" app to your smart phone (available at the Apple app store or Google Play), or by visiting www.crimestoppers.org.

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