An off-duty police dispatcher shot himself in the hand and a passenger's wallet stopped the bullet

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — An off-duty dispatcher for a Long Island police department accidentally shot himself in the hand while unloading his gun in a moving car, and the bullet lodged in the wallet of a passenger, police said.

The 37-year-old dispatcher for the Southampton Village Police was charged with reckless endangerment this week, more than a month after the Sept. 14 shooting, Detective Sgt. Gina Laferrera of the Town of Southampton police said.

The dispatcher was inside a moving vehicle when he “recklessly discharged his firearm,” which he owned legally, Laferrera said in a news release.

The gun went off as its owner was unloading it, “in an unsafe manner in close proximity to other individuals,” Laferrera said.

A bullet traveled through the dispatcher's hand and pierced a wallet in the passenger's pocket, she said.

The dispatcher was treated at a hospital and is recovering from his wound, police said. The person whose wallet stopped the bullet sustained a minor injury.

The dispatcher was arrested Wednesday and charged with reckless endangerment, Laferrera said. He was released and ordered to appear in court at a later date. He did not return a phone message seeking comment Friday.

Laferrera told Newsday that the case took a month to investigate while witnesses were interviewed.

Southampton Village Police Chief Suzanne Hurteau said the dispatcher has been on administrative leave since the shooting. She said the department is conducting its own investigation, which could result in disciplinary charges.

The village of Southampton is part of the larger town of Southampton, a wealthy enclave on Long Island's East End.