Pasadena police officer shoots colleague during 'horseplay' in department parking lot, chief says

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A Pasadena police officer shot and wounded a colleague in the shoulder inside the department’s parking garage last September during an incident the police chief described as “unsafe, out-of-policy horseplay.”Police Chief Gene Harris, however, kept the shooting video under wraps for nearly 10 months by invoking an exception to state law requiring police shootings be released, citing an investigation.Pasadena police released a police cruiser dashcam video Wednesday.The Sept.

7, 2025, video captures the car pulling into the parking garage behind two uniformed officers standing at the rear of a police SUV with its back open around 6:18 p.m.It does not have any sound.As the cruiser approaches the officers, the video shows the officer on the right side of the back of the SUV draw his handgun and point it directly at the approaching police cruiser in an action the police chief said was “inappropriate.” After a few seconds, the officer then reholsters the weapon as he and his colleague smile.The video does not show what happens next inside the vehicle.

Police Chief Harris said the officer seated in the patrol car driver’s seat drew his department-issued handgun and “pointed it toward the other officer, during this interaction, the driving officer’s firearm discharged.”Harris said the round smashed through the cruiser’s windshield and hit one of the officers in the garage at 240 Ramona St.The video shows that about four seconds after the officer reholstered his gun, the dashcam suddenly jolts, there’s a cloud of dust coming from the direction of the car and the officer who was holding a gun grabs his left shoulder and winces.The officer then moves to the side of the SUV as other officers in the parking structure rush to him, help him to the ground and treat his wound.Harris said the officer sustained serious injuries and has since recovered.Under California law, po...