A Columbus man has been charged with two misdemeanors after accidentally shooting himself Monday afternoon, according to a press release from the Columbus Police Department.
Kyle Burnett, 21, was charged with false reporting of a crime and discharging a firearm in the city limits after he allegedly shot himself accidentally and then lied about it to police.
According to police, Burnett said he had been shot in the leg by an unknown person in an unidentified car in the 700 block of 16th Street North.
“It just didn’t add up,” said Chief Joseph Daughtry in the press release. “He said he was walking down the street near 2:30 p.m. Monday and someone just drove up and shot him. We began our investigation and soon discovered the victim was a victim of accidentally shooting himself in the leg.”
Daughtry said Burnett should have handled the incident better.
“We take every incident seriously,” he said in the press release. “… We kept officers and investigators busy chasing down a pretend shooter. It is a waste of our workforce when we can patrol and investigate real incidents, not one made up to cover an accident.”
Burnett was treated at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle for a through-and-through gunshot wound to the leg.
He was not booked into the jail but was charged and “field released,” Daughtry said.
“It does count as an arrest,” he said. “But we released him on his own recognizance because of his medical condition. … If he had murdered somebody that would be different, but he’s not a danger to anyone but himself.”
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Join the Discussion