SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens opens up about 1991 firearm incident

When Grant Stevens was confronted by waiting journalists as he left the ABC’s Adelaide studios following a radio interview on Wednesday morning, he smiled wryly.

“I’m not armed. It’s OK,” the SA Police Commissioner said.

The quip was in reference to an incident from the commissioner’s professional past in which he had, he said, accidentally discharged his firearm during a raid on the house of an alleged drug dealer.

A recent newspaper story has drawn attention to the episode, which dates back to the early 1990s when the now-commissioner was a young criminal investigator.

Here’s a look at what happened, why it has now made headlines, and why an Office for Public Integrity assessment will be conducted.

What’s the story?

Earlier this week, Adelaide’s Sunday Mail newspaper published a report…