One injured during handgun training for police officers

FROM THE CITY OF MEDINA (8/12/25):

On July 8th, 2025, a training incident occurred while Medina Officers were training with newly issued department handguns.

Officers were at the firing range conducting weapon familiarization and qualifications on the new handguns.

The firearms instructor was conducting a demonstration firing at metal targets while the participants in the class were standing nearby observing the process that had just been verbalized.

While firing at the metal target, a piece of metal debris flew back and struck a training participant causing a minor injury in the neck area.

Training was stopped and first aid was applied to the injury by the instructor.

Following the departments on the job injury protocol the injured officer was sent to Physicians Quality Care in Milan for assessment and proper treatment of the injury.

The officer was treated and released to return to full duty later that afternoon.

A review of the incident was conducted by the Chief of Police and the Assistant Chief of Police.

As a result, multiple steps were immediately put into place in an effort to prevent this situation from arising in the future. Those steps are as follows:

• The maximum number of trainees per firearms instructor is 4. If there are 5 or more trainees conducting live fire training, then there must be multiple instructors. The ratio must be 1 instructor with a maximum of 4 trainees. 5 to 8 trainees require at least 2 instructors, and 9 to 12 trainees require 3 instructors. No more than 12 trainees along with at least 3 instructors will be allowed on a firing line at any one time.
• When shooting at metal targets, a minimum distance of 10 yards (30 feet) is required while using department issued handguns. The minimum distance for shooting metal targets with department issued rifles is 50 yards (150 feet).

At the conclusion of the review process, a verbal counseling session was conducted with the training officer to ensure understanding of the situation leading to the injury and the new measures in place as a result.

The leadership of the City of Medina and the Medina Police Department take training officers and injuries very seriously and we are thankful this turned out to be a minor training incident with lessons learned for the future.

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