Former LLPD sergeant resigns after accidentally shooting his gun; now works for APS

A former Los Lunas police sergeant who accidentally shot his gun while inside a police station was recently hired by Albuquerque Public Schools, a district official confirmed Friday. 

Sgt. Buster Whitley, who Los Lunas Police Chief Frank Lucero estimated had been on the force since 2012, resigned his post last month after firing off a round in his office in February. Soon after, he started a new job working for APS’ police department. 

“Anytime something like that happens, it’s always disappointing,” Lucero told the Journal about the shooting incident. “We’re thankful that nobody was hurt, and I just want to assure the public that that behavior doesn’t align with our department’s values.” 

Whitley could not immediately be reached for comment on Friday. 

Surveillance footage from Feb. 27 shows Whitley walking through the hallways of the police station, pointing his gun forward, apparently practicing with the pistol. Minutes later, on a separate camera, a gunshot can be heard and, as several officers cautiously approach, Whitley can be heard saying, “Sorry, that was me,” as someone asks, “What the (expletive) was that?” 

Someone asks if he’s OK, and Whitley responds that he is, adding that “I thought my (expletive) was out and I was practicing my (expletive).” 

“Desk pop?” someone asks, apparently referencing the 2010 comedy movie “The Other Guys,” which has a scene in which an officer fires his gun while sitting at his desk. 

As Whitley walks back in the direction of his office, he pulls his pistol from its holster and repeatedly racks the slide of it, clearing the gun. 

“The story is that he was dry-fire practicing in his office,” Lucero said, adding that there were two other people in the office with him and that “luckily, he had been pointing the firearm in a direction that wasn’t endangering the two people in the room.” 

Two weeks later, Whitley resigned, with his last day at the department being March 15. 

In so doing, Whitley evaded disciplinary action. Lucero said an internal affairs investigation had found there were “sustained policy violations,” including violations related to the safe handling and operations of firearms. 

But, Lucero said, “based on the fact that he resigned, we weren’t able to move forward with disciplinary action,” adding that the department is also not pursuing any criminal charges. 

Soon after Whitley’s resignation, during the week of March 25, he was hired by APS’ police department, where he’s still employed. 

In an email, APS spokeswoman Monica Armenta confirmed the district had conducted a background check on Whitley, and said the district was aware that he’d resigned from the Los Lunas Police Department. 

Armenta did not, however, answer a question about whether APS knew about the shooting incident. Lucero said a background check investigator did visit the department to look through the former sergeant’s file. 

But because the internal affairs investigation was still ongoing, Lucero said the incident would not have been in Whitley’s file at the time. Lucero added Whitley should have informed APS of the incident himself. 

Armenta would not say what school Whitley is stationed at, asking that the Journal “please submit an (Inspection of Public Records Act) request with the APS Custodian of Records for this information.” 

She also did not answer a question about whether the district felt it was safe for Whitley to be around students.