This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A Utah County Attorney's Office employee accidentally fired a gun in the Provo office last week — but no one was injured by the stray bullet.
County Attorney Jeff Buhman confirmed Wednesday that a shot was accidentally fired through a window sometime last week. He said an employee — a concealed carry permit holder — had brought a new handgun to work, and gave it to another employee who wanted to see it.
Buhman said that employee, who is also permitted to carry a concealed weapon, "failed to fully render it safe and accidentally or negligently fired a round."
The shot went through a window, according to Buhman. Police officers later looked for the bullet outside, but couldn't find it.
"It's probably in the grass somewhere," Buhman said.
The county attorney declined to identify the employee who fired the weapon or say whether he or she is an attorney within the office. He also did not detail any disciplinary action taken against the employee.
"We certainly have a policy that you don't fire a gun in the office," Buhman said. "It's definitely a problem and we are dealing with it."
Buhman said people in his office, prosecutors in particular, often carry weapons with them because they have been threatened in the past.
"They go through training every year," he said. "They fire at least two times during the year, and re-qualify every year. This was just a mistake."
Twitter: @jm_miller