Summit County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to an accidental shooting in White Pine Canyon on Tuesday.
Deputies were called to the Park City Hospital on reports of a man with a single gunshot wound to his right knee, according to a report from the Sheriff’s Office. Upon their arrival, deputies made contact with the 25-year-old West Jordan man who had shot himself.
Through an investigation, deputies determined that the 25-year-old had used marijuana prior to the incident. According to the Sheriff’s Office, the man was with his coworkers at a construction site in the area. The man told deputies he recently purchased the gun and was showing it to his colleagues.
The man then went to his vehicle during his lunch break and allegedly began cleaning the handgun inside the car. He told deputies he thought the gun was cleared of bullets prior to him pointing it at the floor of the vehicle. Then, he pulled the trigger.
Deputies said the incident occurred in the same vehicle that the man was taken to the hospital in. They conducted a search of the car and located the firearm used in the incident along with marijuana.
The shooting is suspected to be an accident based on the information collected by deputies, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The case will remain active and will be screened for charges by the Summit County Attorney’s Office.