We're the Only Ones Discharged Enough

A Berkeley police officer has been charged with criminally discharging his firearm outside his San Francisco home last month, the third member of the department this year to be investigated for alleged misconduct, authorities said today.

Sean Derry, 30, fired several shots with his department-issued weapon on Aug. 12, according to San Francisco prosecutors who lodged a felony charge against him of discharging a firearm at an inhabited dwelling.

But Derry's attorney, Harry Stern of Pleasant Hill, disputed the charge, saying his client thought a homeless man was burglarizing his home. Derry went outside and fired his weapon into the air, not at a building, Stern said, adding that no one was injured.

Yeah, I totally sympathize. I fire my gun in the air when I see homeless people near my house all the time--particularly on recycling day, where the law requires homeowners create an attractive nuisance in front of their houses. Talk about justified! And talk about a good belly-laugh when they scatter!

Good Lord, his excuse just about reflects more poorly on his judgment and training than what he's being charged with. Instead of going after a specific target, this moron endangers everyone in proximity.

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