Cops: C.W. Post instructor shoots self in leg

An adjunct professor at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University in Brookville accidentally discharged a weapon outside his classroom at the school Thursday, shooting himself in the leg, police said.

The professor, John Carney, 72, was taken to a hospital for treatment and is listed in stable condition, Nassau County Police Det. Lt. Kevin Smith said.

Smith and college officials said the injury from the shooting, reported at 7:50 a.m., is not life-threatening.

"The man was about to conduct class, and he wanted to secure his gun so he decided to remove it in the hallway," Smith said. He said the gun is licensed.

Carney -- a retired New York City fire marshal according to police sources -- accidentally discharged his weapon and shot himself. Smith and college officials said there were no other faculty or students around when the gun went off. Carney went into the classroom and asked his students for help, Smith said.

One student summoned her father, a law enforcement officer, who held onto the weapon until police and an ambulance arrived, Smith said.

C.W. Post Provost Paul Forestell and the school's director of public safety, Paul Rapess, issued a statement saying the shooting was "an isolated incident" and the university has "a strict no weapons policy."

The statement said police and college officials are investigating.

New York City fire marshals, as peace officers, can routinely carry weapons, city officials said. A retired peace officer's license entitles the person to carry a weapon in New York State "at any time," except New York City, said the Nassau County Police Pistol License Section handbook.

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