I have caught both new and veteran officers making a simple but dangerous mistake: not protecting their duty gear while in public bathrooms, specifically by using the urinal.
I warned a recuit one afternoon about how vulnerable his weapon was while he was standing at the urinal and “doing his business.” Later that day I ran into him at a public bathroom within our patrol area and sure enough he was doing it again.
He never gave me a glance as the door to the bathroom closed and I walked in. I walked up to him and said, “While you have your hands full, I have your weapon”.
He reacted by turning slightly to the right, but he didn’t “disengage the unit”..LOL. He stood there holding his pants and said, “I guess you were right. This is the first and last time I wet myself trying to protect my weapon.” We, as guys, react but don’t “let go” because we don’t want to piss all over ourselves, for lack of a better term.
When you’re out in public, use the toilet stall instead of the urinal. The door and walls protect yout duty gear from being taken while your “doing your business.” That simple change in routine my save your life someday.