The only time I could ever think a gun would need to be drawn is when an officer believes his life is in danger.

....It musta been some shove!

I was there... The guy not only shoved him but tried to hit him. The guy kept coming even after the shove. He tried to hit him and missed that's when the officer drew his gun

So Riddle me this, What cause the argument in the first place. Was the man provoked? I find it hard to believe that a fight broke out in a Wal-Mart Checkout line like it was a Hockey game.

A nice description of the events is being reported elsewhere;
http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/news/10468297-418/officer-pulls-gun-in-oswego-wal-mart-to-make-arrest.html

Thurmond said he and his wife were doing their Super Bowl shopping at the Wal-Mart Sunday afternoon. The store was crowded and the lines were long, Thurmond said.

Thurmond realized they had forgotten eggs and stepped out of line to get them while his wife was being rung up, he said. When he returned, Thurmond said his wife, who is nine months pregnant, looked upset and the deputy was yelling at her. The deputy was in line behind Thurmond and his wife.

Thurmond said the deputy was complaining they were holding up the line. Thurmond told him to leave his wife alone and go to another line if he was that impatient. At that point, Thurmond, who is 5-foot-5 and 355 pounds, according to court records, said the off-duty deputy stepped toward him.

Thurmond admitted he then shoved the deputy. At that point, the officer pulled out his gun and pointed it at Thurmond’s chest, Thurmond said.

Thurmond said customers were running and screaming. Some were taking pictures with their phones and someone called 911.

Whenever possible, we shop at night to avoid the crowds and the impatient sighs.

Leave it to an oswego cop to pull a gun because he likes to run his mouth. He should have to go through another psychological screening before they put him back out on duty.

I was at Walmart when this happened. I was being rung up about 5 registers over. All you could hear was unclear shouting, then "call 911" "You're under arrest", "I'm a police officer"...a lot of yelling. The cashier instructed the customers to "get down" and stopped ringing. In a few minutes, a police officer was on the scene with a riot shield, followed by another officer with an assult rifle. I've never seen anything like it.

It's absolutely absurd that the police officer with withdraw his weapon. It wasn't as if I had never seen Walmart that crowded before...it really wasn't too bad. But the police can't think it's ok to withdraw a firearm in a public location over being "shoved". The only thing he should have pulled out was a badge or an id. Clearly this cop is a hot head that shouldn't be allowed to walk around armed.

Sounds like the Kendall County Sheriff provoked Mr Thurmond. Before Mr Thurmond arrived back in line with the eggs, the deputy was in a verbal altercation with his pregnant wife. When Mr Thurmond stepped in to defend his wife, the deputy "stepped into" Mr Thurmond and he reacted by pushing him back. I don't see how this is a closed investigation for The Oswego Police Department. Because a Kendall Deputy was involved, it was his word that facilitated the arrest for assault against Mr Thurmond! Love to see the phone videos and hear from other bystanders that may have seen the threatening body language the deputy used before being pushed and pulling his handgun out and pointing at Mr Thurmond. The deputy must of felt that his life was in danger...

It might have been bad judgment on his part, but all police have the right to carry their weapons off duty! People need to not be so quick to judge officers of the law when they mess up. They are there for you when you need them 24/7, leaving their families at home to keep you safe! Oh and Don they don't withdraw their weapons, the draw them ;-)

All the information in the news article came from the idiot that was arrested. HELLO !

The argument started because the pregnant woman had more than 20 items in her cart and she was in a 20 item or less lane. The next thing you know, a gun is pulled and "code brown" was echoing in the store and people are being told to go to the ground.

In my opinion, this goes against the case for "conceal & carry" .... next time it might not be an unidentified officer that gets aggravated at someone having 20 or more items in the quick lane at Walmart. I wasn't there so I obviously don't know the details, but between the stabbing in Naperville and this incident, does it seem people are getting offended much faster, thereby having more severe physical reactions instead of verbal?

Seems to me the officer should be put off duty pending investigation. I agree cops have to be careful but he was off duty doing his shopping like everyone else. Wow the woman had over 20 items. Man I guess he had a right to act like an animal than. I don't know either the partys involved in this. I am a law abiding citizen who has never even had a ticket in my 49 yrs. and I think this is so wrong.

IS IT NECESSARY TO PULL A GUN ON A SHOVING MATCH? WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE SITUATION REALLY GOT OUT OF CONTROL? HOW MANY PEOPLE COULD HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES ON SOMETHING STUPID? WHAT HAPPENED TO CALLING 911, MACE, OR A TASER? NOTHING WRONG WITH CONCEALED CARRY. IT'S THE PERSON WHO NEEDS TO CONTROL THEMSELVES.

Disgusting. Pointing a loaded gun in a crowded store at a man standing in front of his pregnant wife, in plain clothes and off duty, over how many items she had in her cart. Should lose his job.

This happens all the time. When citizens file complaints officer's laugh and say it happens all the time. There is no system of checks and balances in this County. No internal department and many of these officer's think they are above the law. Good luck trying to sue you'll never win against the machine and they know it. I'm sorry that so many people had to be subject to the stress of this situation but at the same time glad there were witnesses and people are talking about what really happened. Don't think this is an isolated incident because it is not!

It's nice how they don't give us the officer's name but joe public gets his splattered all over the news!

5'5" 350 lbs?? Making it from the front end all of the way back to the dairy dept. to get eggs... The walking back to the express registers... Must have been a 5-8 minute trip.. If I was in line I would be upset too!!! People have the right to say anything they wish!! FREEDOM OF SPEECH!!!!! What we don't have the right or freedom of is putting your hands on anyone!! Stop defending the idiots of the world and put yourself in that situation...

You mean like you defending the officer who didn't tell anyone he was a cop until after the fact! How smart is that?

I was like 10 feet away when all this happened on Sunday. It was completely irresponsible for the sheriff's officer to pull that gun out. I ran to the other side of the store because I thought he was a psycho about to shoot. He needs evaluation.

The only difference between this and the Naperville incident is one was a cop and no one was killed. Nice..... Pulling a weapon is such a crowded public place is unacceptable . A Hot head who should lose his job for thhis action.

The officer was out of line. He should have announced he was an officer while presenting his badge. But no he pulls his weapon. This was an EGO thing and they wonder why kids are bullied.

I saw this happen from the next isle over. The officer yelled very loud and said " NOBODY TAKES THE LAST BOX OF CHOCOLATE GLAZED DONUTS! Then he pointed the gun sideways like he was a thug in a movie.

Antoine Boo:I am a manger of walmart called the code brown. There was no badge shown, i feared for the customers and my associates, I am a manager of walmart oswego, what I saw was a man with a gun pointing it at a customer, and after hearing the stuff that just went down in down town naperville, i had to be alert. Im sorry for all the discomfort anyone feels, its my job to service you, and my associates.

Again im sorry.

Oswego now joins the other police departments that have a problem with their officers/criminals.

Channahon - officer attacking unarmed man with 3 other friends(also officers)
http://triblocal.com/bolingbrook/2011/04/19/fate-unclear-for-officers-arrested-in-strip-club-brawl/
Yorkville - Officer charged with stealing drugs from police station
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-05-28/news/ct-met-yorkville-cop-bust-0529-20110528_1_hydrocodone-pills-weeklong-investigation-painkiller

These are not 'isolated incidents'. There is a severe and widespread problem throughout almost every police department in the region. Residents keep seeing a different set of rules for themselves, then they see applied to these criminals with a badge. We NEED to start demanding the best of the best in our public servants, and stop allowing this top-down irresponsibility to continue unabated.

Obviously, the internal investigations, performed by his buddies, are not worth the paper they are printed on if it has already been closed and this officer is still on the payroll.

I would be interested to see the store video to see what really happened! And what this off duty deputy was purchasing. Did he ever get his purchases? This crazed Deputy's selfishness ruined everyone's afternoon.... If anyone has cell phone video or photos they should post them.

Just another example of how ALL arrogant police officers think they are above the law! This officer should be suspended without pay!! Pulling out a gun in Walmart - wow - just how much in danger was this officer??

Thank goodness the officer wasn't hurt or anyone else. Who in their right mind assaults a police officer? And how was the officer supposed to know that this giant wasn't armed to the hilt? The officer was protecting himself - that's his job.

Thank goodness no one got hurt. What kind of officer in their right mind pulls a gun on an unarmed man while off duty in plain clothes without previously announcing he was an officer? In a checkout line in a crowded store, on the 5 ft 5 inch "giant"?

....with kids around!

I support CCW rights, and as a law abiding gun owner, I'm looking forward to the day when Illinois will join the other 49 states and legally permit CCW. That being said, I've been through CCW training courses in other states and with the NRA, and I would never have drawn a loaded weapon to settle a dispute in the express lane! I'd be willing to bet anyone else with a CCW permit would not have drawn their weapon either. But a trained LEO did, and that's disgusting, and a man was arrested as a result. I hope Kendall county does a thorough investigation and cites their officer and gets him retrained/recertified on proper use of his sidearm.

Aren't officers trained to defuse situations not escalate them? I didn't realize that the express lane is so dangerous that deadly force has to come into play. The officer should have been professional and not continued to argue with this person. He allowed this to go to a higher level. He is the professional who is supposed to handle these situations not make them worse. Should the guy have pushed him? probably not, but why did the officer continue with this Dirty Harry mentality to where he pulls out his gun. The investigation will be handled by his co workers and nothing will happen. I personnal think that review panels that handle these situations be made up of civlians who have no ties to officers. Deadly force is the last option. When he pulled his gun he was demostrating that he was willing to use deadly force.

I dont know if this thread is entertainment or just sad. I am getting a kick and getting disgusted at the same time from you guys condeming/defending a situation and the action of others without all the facts. 20 items or less, hot head cop of a department you cant even get right, conceal and carry.... at least stay on topic for Gods sake. Thats all I have, I am just going to sit back and watch the show you morons are putting on for me!

What's ridiculous is someone felt the need to pull a loaded gun out in a crowded store with kids around, and point it at an unarmed man because he got shoved. What a puss.

A gun should always be drawn if you have too many items,,,,,,,,

i am a associate of walmart oswego, ( MANAGER) and i care dearly for my customers and associates. I called that code brown ( shooting situation) so that oswego PD would be on the way. The sgt Joe guy did not show his badge at the time. I feared for my cashiers as well. I do not agree with the action that the sheriff took in our oswego walmart.

Antoine you have to know where I am coming from. The situation is bad enough, but look at those comments up there. That had to be some scary stuff no doubt, but yeah really.

Again, NOBODY has the right to put their hands on anybody else.. I'll bet that jerk will think twice about who he is threatning. The angry customer and his pregnant wife were not inocent in this whole situation. If I were a police officer and a 355lb man was swinging at me, I'd pull my gun as well. We live in a crazy world and crazy things happen. by pulling the gun, the sitution stopped immediately. What is the alternative? A wrestling match in a crowded store where a lot of people could get hurt? Grow the heck up and live in the world we live in!!!! You all depend on the police to save your lives when it is in danger!! That officer is a good man and did what he needed to do to stop a bad situation from getting worse!!

You're right Scoots, I should start bringing one of guns with me to Walmart. If someone puts their hands on me, I'll pull it out to stop a bad situation. Oh, I depend on ON DUTY UNIFORMED police to be there when I need them. The fact that he needed to pull his gun because someone pushed him shows just what kind of giant puss he is. Of he pulled his badge, it would have had the same effect, and without the threat of deadly force. He didn't ID himself until after he pulled a loaded weapon in a crowded store. He was in the wrong, and should be dealt with accordingly. He should be thankful this isn't a conceal and carry state, or someone might have taken him down in self defense, since he did not identify himself before he drew his weapon.

My wife and 2 year old were in the store when it happened, and she came running out with him, scared. Amy I know exactly what happened. Were you there?

Nope, but I see you brought up conceal and carry again. Nothing to do with the story. I cant stand what ifs. I cant stand could ofs. Lets all have meaningless conversations on all the things that didnt happen.

The gun "could have" gone off and killed an unarmed man, is that better?

Not really. Same nonsense of could haves. Look the situation was bad enough why play pretend that it "could have" went the other way "if"......

This is quite simple. The officer was wrong in this situation. All he had to do was show his badge not a gun in a crowded store. Common sense people.

See. Skott had a worthy comment. Short, simple, to the point and not over dramatic

Scoots, neither adult acted right however the officer was way out of line pulling a weapon 1, in a public place with many people present, 2, without saying he was an officer 3, put the weapon in the guys chest still not saying he was a police officer. This is training 101 for officers and this guy's big EGO got in the way....period. He was WRONG they both were WRONG but to pull a gun. There are many many witnesses who seen this. They all hit the floor thinking some crazed fool was in the store come to find out it was some crazed officer..nice.

It's possible to have this discussion without calling people names. Take it easy on each other, folks.

He didn't react as an officer, he reacted as a guy who had a gun and was in an argument. Then it was "Oh, by the way, it's ok, I'm a cop."

This is a forum in which people have an opportunity to express their opinions. If you do not wish to read them, then don't!!!! It is true we may not have all the facts, however, I agree the bottom line is the officer was out of line!!! Officers are trained to diffuse situations, not escalate them, further demonstrating the officer took extrordinary measures for a relatively unextrordinary event. If every person that shoved another person was arrested our courtrooms would be full every single day. Technically it is against the law to even touch someone. If you brush too roughly against someone standing next to you and that person is somehow offended, you can be arrested. Keep in mind that this guy is 5' 5" and 350 lbs. Not making fun, but this guy might be just about as wide as he is tall. If the officer felt so threatened it is safe to assume he could out run this guy quite easily. A much better decision then pulling out his gun.

Could you even imagine what would have happened if the roles were reversed? What if Mr. Thurmond pulled out a gun? He either would have been arrested and thrown in jail or Oswego Police would have lit him up so fast. Insane. I agree this officer should definitely have a psych eval immediately or be suspended until the appropriate disciplinary action has been given. If it’s true that the investigation is closed I'm going to be sick to my stomach. Most people I talk to in town have a sour taste in their mouths as I do that Kendall & Oswego Police are over staffed and sometimes looking for mischief. There are a lot of us that sincerely feel this way. People young and old. Especially the residents that have lived here over the past 15-20 years. Think about where we live…compared to a whole lot of places we have a fairly peaceful town. Now having said that, I'm not characterizing the entire police force as out to get you, but it's certainly not a warm and fuzzy "to serve and protect feeling I get either." The store surveillance video should absolutely be released as well as any other cell video…that is, if it's not a crime to film a police officer.

Think about the message that is being sent to the residents of Oswego. Off duty police officers can pull guns with out consequence but even more frightening is the message that the Oswego Police Leadership is sending…..Nothing to see here cary on. Therein lays the problem. Some leadership.

Why is court date set so far away until March 28th? That seems extremely long considering others charged with battery charges a day later and have an earlier court date set. How do they determine that?

Check your facts there Tim. The ex officer that was involved in the Yorkville PD incident was the Yorkville Deputy Chief. Not a Kendall Co Deputy.

What ifs and could haves are how new laws are born. Thats all we need are more laws. Take a situation and put some what ifs in there and BOOM! We have a new law!

Yorkville is a police department. Thus their employees are police officers. Kendall COuty is a Sherrif's department. Thus their employees are deputized. There is a difference. Please don't slam one department for another department's employee's crime. That is all I want to clarify.

Another example of the Kendall County sherrif's office running amok. The deputy should be fired. He did not identify himself as a LEO until AFTER he pulled his gun.

Nice conspiracy theory Citizen, but what if????

The deputy has been unofficially named according to an article in the Chicago Tribune.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-sheriffs-spokesman-under-investigation-for-pulling-gun-in-walmart-20120207,0,5220194.story

And some more information http://www.wgnradio.com/news/local/breaking/chi-sheriffs-spokesman-under-investigation-for-pulling-gun-in-walmart-20120207,0,4853342.story?track=rss Looks like there has been a complaint filed against Deputy French.

We'll have a story in five and a half hours with all this information and more.

Unfortunately, this finally brings to the fore front and just scratches the surface of what really goes on with Kendall County Sheriff's office and the Kendall County Jail!

Abuse of power and brutality, and if you are unlucky enough to be incarcerated it is unbelievable and you have NO rights! Try to fight this from inside jail... Every phone conversation is recorded...try to complain!! I have been told by many inmates that have been released about if they file a formal complaint or a grievance about conditions that they are taken to an area that there are no video recordings and are beaten, withhold food and medical attention. Pre-trial detainees (meaning innocent until proven guilty) are held in the same area with post-trial inmates. Made to stay in cells with others with infectious diseases. Lack of proper Medical care and some inmates have been given the wrong medication that nearly killed them!! We just had an inmate of 71 years die and they did an internal investigation and said it was "natural causes"..... Wake up Kendall County!! Full investigation needs to happen and dig deeper than just this case!!

The next time you need help, call a crackhead and see if they come running at 100mph to help you. Stop judging police when you dont know what really happened or what their policies/procedures are

Nice try, but nope.

Citizen should recite what the laws in Illinois are governing police powers are when making an arrest since he is such an expert in this particular area

Clearly these are First and Fourth Amendment rights violations! Was that not clear?

However i do agree with "citizens" comment about barney fife handing over his bullet. People are getting crazier everyday and im sure the police see this everyday, therefore they cant afford to assume that aggressive people arent going to hurt them because they havent actually brandished a weapon yet. Im sure naperville residents wouldnt have thought that guy was going to murder that guy in the bar recently until it was too late

This story has been updated this morning here: http://oswego.patch.com/articles/sheriff-s-deputy-still-on-active-duty-after-walmart-incident

Those who would trade liberty for safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.

All this because a RUDE dude opened his big mouth because he had a few items to check out and had ZERO patients.BULLY is what this is. Get's in the womans face who BTW is 9 months pregnant and acts like an animal. What man would allow another man to treat a woman like this? I doub't none of you would have allowed this. Then the rest of the story. Perhpas he never learned how to respectfully talk to people and thinks that because he has a badge hid in those pockets of his he can talk to people like this and act like a fool. Not to mention put every single person in that store at risk... Unprofessional to say the least and officers like this give great officers and departments bad reputations.

The worst part is that he is a veteran officer. If he acts like this and gets away with it what kind of message is he sending to the deputies below him? Rogue officers who act like he does, and it is happening all the time in Kendall. When citizens go in and make formal complaints they are laughed off. They have no Internal Affairs and all complaints are handled by their superiors (buddies). If you don't like your results at the Sheriff's office you're directed over to the State's Attorney's office. So at the end of the day does anyone really think that Thurmond's complaint is going anywhere? It makes for good PR to say they take these complaint's seriously but do they? I guess we shall see.

I am surprised the pregnant lady wasn't arrested when she didn't hit the ground as instructed by the officer. haha

If the entire video ever gets released we will all know the truth, but since the officer is at fault you'll never see it in it's entirety. You'll see an edited version that doesn't show the officer berating a pregnant woman and provoking her husband. Yet the husband goes to jail and the officer gets no punishment. Nice justice.