A Utah police detective has sued the manufacturer of a gun holster, claiming a design defect resulted in her accidentally shooting herself and causing lasting damage.
A Utah police officer who accidentally shot herself in the hip during a training session has sued the holster manufacturer, alleging the holster has a history of causing misfires and is unsafe.
Lacy Turner was injured in 2022 during firearms training while working for the Kaysville Police Department. A design flaw in her holster caused her to inadvertently discharge her weapon, which fired a round into her hip, then exited her thigh and left her with permanent damage, the lawsuit alleges.
Turner had purchased a Serpa brand holster for her 9mm Glock handgun, the lawsuit says. A similar Serpa holster was recalled by the manufacturer in 2019, after the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission cited possible safety issues with the device. The holster's safety catch must be disengaged with the trigger finger, sometimes resulting in accidental discharge as the gun is pulled from the holster, the commission said.
Turner's holster had the same issues, her lawsuit alleges.
The manufacturer of the holsters has publicly said later versions were designed to prevent such discharges.
Serpa holsters are not used in training exercises by several law enforcement agencies over that safety issue. The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center also recommends against using Serpa holsters, citing a 2022 Homeland Security investigation of incidents involving accidental discharges.
Those findings are included in Turner's lawsuit.
"Once locked, the shooter experiences a greater amount of duress," the lawsuit says, quoting from the Homeland Security report. "The shooter then tends to use more force in an effort to remove the weapon from the holster," and that extra effort can cause the finger to pull the trigger, the lawsuit claims.
The lawsuit names Federal Cartridge Corp., which a owned subsidiary of parent company Vista Outdoor Inc., and others.
Inside Edition Digital has reached out to the parent company of the holster manufacturer, but has not heard back.
The lawsuit seeks an unspecified amount of damages for claims of medical expenses, lost wages and pain and suffering. Permanent nerve damage will limit the length of Turner's law enforcement career, her attorney, Peter Mifflin, tells Inside Edition Digital.
"She doesn’t want other people to be hurt like she was," Mifflin says. "It is important to remember that this incident occurred on a training range, rather than in a life-or-death situation. The entire point of training is to improve competency and to build good habits."
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