By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – A customer at the checkout counter of a Chehalis pet supply store accidentally fired his 38 revolver, injuring himself yesterday.
Police called at 12:42 p.m. yesterday to the Twin City Town Center found the victim and his wife had already headed to the hospital, according to the Chehalis Police Department.
The 79-year-old Onalaska resident shot himself in the foot, according to police.
He and his wife were at the counter at Petsense when he placed his hands in his pockets, and then witnesses heard a loud bang, department spokesperson Linda Bailey said. The man, who was not named, then stated he shot himself, Bailey said.
An officer made contact with him, and he confirmed what happened, according to Bailey.
The victim was treated at Providence Centralia Hospital for the non-life threatening injury and has been released, according to Bailey.
Bailey said nobody else was injured. She didn’t know how many people were inside the business at the time.
The strip mall is just west of Interstate 5 on the 1400 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue.
The case will be forwarded to Chehalis Municipal Court prosecutors for a review of possible charges, according to police.
Three years ago, after a 40-year-old man holstering his firearm in the parking lot at Sunbird Shopping Center accidentally fired a round through his hand and into his wife’s thigh, he was charged with reckless endangerment.