Man sentenced for shooting self accidentally at school

ST. PAUL, Minn. — A St. Paul man will not serve jail time for accidentally shooting himself in front of dozens of children at an elementary school earlier this year, Ramsey County court documents reveal.
On Tuesday, Lamont Ray pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor count of recklessly handling a dangerous weapon for the Jan. 18 incident. He was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation.
The shooting happened during an open house at Como Park Elementary School. Court documents say dozens of families were in the gym when Ray’s handgun discharged, firing a round into his leg while he played basketball with his daughter. No one else was hurt.
Ray is legally permitted to carry a firearm. St. Paul Public Schools, however, does not allow firearms on its property.
Charges say Ray told responding officers he wasn’t wearing his holster because he had spilled water on it, and he was “having trouble keeping his pants up.” Ray was later treated and released from an area hospital.
Note: The video above originally aired on Jan. 19, 2024.