Stupid, Not Criminal

This story reminded me of a time when the police tried to bully me in the ER.

A young man about 20 came to the ER with a gun shot wound to his forearm. There was little damage to his arm and you could palpate the bullet through his skin. Two cops showed up and started demanding medical information about the patient. I told them they would have to have the patient give his permission before I could give them any information.

The patient refused.

When the cops spoke to the doctor he gave them all the information they wanted. By state law we have to provide the name and injury a patient has been inflicted with for a violent injury. The patient has no legal requirement to speak to the police and we can only provide the patients name and address, no medical information beyond the initial injury. If the cops want that information they have to get it from the patient or get a subpoena.

The doctor removed the bullet from the young mans arm and the cops immediately started demanding that they had to have it. They were way out of line. They knew that proper channels were that the bullet had to go to pathology first and await a subpoena before it could be released.

The cops were royally pissed and followed me to the lab and watched as I signed off a chain of evidence form. As I was leaving I heard them start to bully the lab tech to give them the bullet.

I spoke to the tech later and he assured me the cops left clueless and bulletless.

As for the kid, it was obvious he had shot himself in the arm and was embarrassed about it. Nothing sinister about the incident as the cops were trying to prove. The kid was at home with his father when he shot himself. Stupid, not necessarily criminal.

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