A third of the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office is on temporary leave after two of its deputies were shot and one was injured while attempting to execute an arrest warrant in Stuart last week.
Deputies Kent Gries, Steven Henry, and Jim Mink suffered non-life threatening injuries and were all discharged from hospital care this past weekend. Sheriff Marty Arganbright says they are all on paid administrative leave until further notice, while the case remains open with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. Arganbright says the three deputies mostly work the night shift, and were called to assist Stuart Police Officer Tyler DeFrancisco in executing a Clarke County warrant for 52-year-old Randall Comly of Stuart, who faces a second-degree arson felony charge for a September 17th incident. Comly is also currently facing two class B felonies for attempting to commit terrorism and first degree burglary for an August 6th incident in Guthrie County. Coincidentally, the three deputies had just passed their routine firearm qualification course the day before the shooting.
Arganbright says the incident has brought some anxiety to the Sheriff’s Office staff, and a debriefing is going to be offered to all the emergency agencies involved by the Iowa Department of Public Safety this week. He says everyone’s relieved that all the officers got to come home after serving their duty, “It’s the reason why law enforcement is here, is to keep the communities and keep the citizens and everyone safe. That’s our job you know, we’re here to take that on anytime we need to. So I pretty much like to think that Guthrie County is for the most part a safe place to live. That’s what I’ve always liked about Guthrie County and the surrounding counties, so there are some incidents and we’re here to take care of them.”
Arganbright says several surrounding law enforcement agencies have offered to step in for Gries, Henry, and Mink when needed. He thanks all the residents and community groups that have shown them support, especially the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Chaplains for their assistance. No criminal charges from the shooting have yet been filed, Raccoon Valley Radio will bring you more information as it becomes official.