Spokane police officer with three past suspensions placed on administrative leave

A Spokane police officer previously suspended three times for misconduct has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal affairs investigation. Officer Barry O’Connell, a 19-year veteran of the police force, was put on paid leave on Nov. 29. It is not a criminal investigation, Spokane Police Department spokeswoman Monique Cotton said. Cotton did not provide additional details about the investigation, but said it is unrelated to any of the prior three incidents. O’Connell was suspended for three weeks without pay in 2012 after his then 10-year-old daughter accidentally shot herself in the leg with his service weapon. O’Connell was found to have violated the department’s weapons policy requiring officers to properly secure their duty weapons at home. He was also suspended in 2010 for 80 hours without pay for “conduct unbecoming” an officer and for insubordination. In 2009, he was suspended without pay for 40 hours after accusations of sexual harassment were filed against him.