Bullet tears through neighbor’s TV in one of two accidental Bend gun discharges this month
(UPDATE: Adding quotes from Bend PD PIO, Shelia Miller and from a neighbor of one of the shootings)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Bend Police issued gun safety reminders after two separate accidental handgun discharges occurred in Bend just this month. The incidents resulted in two arrests and put neighbors at serious risk.
The incidents involved 37-year-old Bend resident Preston Wayne Cooper, who was arrested on suspicion of reckless endangering and 27-year-old Bend resident Dylan James Plymale. Plymale was arrested on suspicion of two counts of reckless endangering, fourth-degree assault and second-degree criminal mischief. The accidental discharges took place on May 16 and May 24.
One incident occurred at about 2:30 p.m. on May 16, when Bend Police received a report that a family member found evidence of a bullet traveling through an elderly woman's apartment wall, mattress, box springs and closet doors before lodging in a box of medical equipment. Investigating officers learned the woman had heard a loud noise on May 14 and her neighbor, Cooper, came over to borrow a cup of sugar shortly after the noise. Cooper had pawned a firearm on May 16. On May 18, officers served a search warrant on Cooper's apartment and located multiple firearms, ammunition and a bullet hole in the apartment's wall.
In a separate case, at around 11:48 a.m. on May 24, 2026, Bend Police responded to a report from a tenant on NE Zachary Court that his neighbor had discharged a weapon and the bullet passed through the wall. Plymale told officers he had been cleaning firearms and thought the handgun was unloaded when he tossed it onto a coffee table and it fired a round. The bullet went through the neighbor's television and shrapnel from the television struck the neighbor. An investigation determined Plymale was practicing drawing his handgun when it fired.
A neighbor in Bend, who declined to be on camera, recounted hearing a gunshot. "Just about ready to put my daughters to bed when I heard a gunshot. That was pretty close," the neighbor said. "I looked out the window kind of toward the apartments around my the back side of my house and I didn't see anything, so I just kind of closed the blinds and went about my business. But it definitely sounded closer than I would have liked."
Sheila Miller, Bend Police Department Public Information Officer, emphasized the potential danger of these incidents. "In both of these instances, there were people in the homes next door that could have been injured," Miller said. "Thankfully, one person suffered very minor injuries, but these could have been a lot worse." Miller also stressed the importance of careful firearm use. "We want people to be cognizant and really think about how they're using their firearms so that something even more tragic doesn't happen."
Bend Police recommend several gun safety measures. Owners should always keep a gun pointed in a safe direction, even when they believe it is unloaded. They also advise keeping fingers off the trigger unless prepared to fire it and never assuming a firearm is unloaded. Gun owners should always check that a firearm is unloaded immediately after picking it up. Police also stress the importance of knowing how to properly handle any firearm owned and securing firearms in a safe manner.
Bend Police remind gun owners about responsible ownership. This includes knowing how to properly handle any firearm owned and securing firearms in a safe manner. Gun owners should always keep a gun pointed in a safe direction, even when believing it is unloaded. The police advise keeping fingers off the trigger, only touching it when prepared to fire and always checking that a firearm is unloaded immediately after picking it up.
