The Jacksonville (Florida) Sheriff’s Office has started the process to terminate a police officer over the accidental shooting of a man at a December traffic stop.

An internal investigation has charged Officer Mindy Cardwell with “gross incompetence” over the accidental discharge that wounded Jason Arrington when she removed a Glock .45 pistol from his holster. Arrington was legally carrying the pistol under Florida law.

The Dec. 13 incident began when Officer Shaun Lowry stopped Arrington for running a red light, according to body-worn camera video released by Jacksonville SO on Jan. 21, 2025.

Arrington told Officer Lowry that he was armed as required under Florida law.

He was asked to step out of the vehicle because he was carrying.

Officer Austin Weippert and Officer Cardwell handled Arrington after he stepped out of the vehicle.

The video shows Officer Weippert standing with Arrington—watching the man’s hands, according to his statement—while Officer Cardwell removed the pistol from Arrington’s inside-the-waistband holster. The Internal Affairs report says that while attempting to remove the pistol, Officer Cardwell put two fingers in the trigger guard, putting pressure on the Glock’s trigger and causing it to fire.

Image from Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Internal Affairs report shows officer's finger inside the trigger guard before the accidental discharge.

Credit:

Jacksonville SO

Arrington was hit in the upper thigh and the bullet exited his leg on the interior of his knee.

Officer Weippert and Officer Cardwell provided first aid to Arrington using a tourniquet and compression bandages. Officer Lowry called for an ambulance and Arrington was transported to a local hospital, the video shows.

Officer Cardwell told Internal Affairs: "I have never been trained to remove a firearm from another person's holster."