Long Island patient charged with reckless endangerment after gun discharges in MRI exam room

Anicka Slachta | | Radiology Business | Magnetic Resonance Imaging
offender-trouble-handcuffs-police-arrest-2102488.jpg

An MRI patient in Long Island, New York, was arrested last month after a firearm in his pocket discharged in the exam room, resulting in injuries to both of his legs, the LI Herald has reported.

Frank Chester attended a planned appointment at Stand-Up MRI of Lynbrook about a month ago, according to local police, and was asked by clinic staff to “make sure he had no metal on him” before entering the exam room. Chester allegedly told employees he didn’t, but the MRI technician reported a loud popping sound when Chester entered the room.

Lynbrook police: Man injured, arrested after gun goes off in MRI machine

A loaded .380-caliber handgun had been in the patient’s pocket, authorities said, and magnets from the MR machine caused the gun to discharge on the spot.

Chester was left with two injuries in each of his thighs and charged with reckless endangerment. 

Read more from the Herald:

""
Anicka Slachta

After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.

Related Content

PHOTO GALLERY: Medical imaging technology at RSNA 2024
Nearly $800,000 settlement offered to family of man who died during MRI exam
Key takeaways from RSNA 2024 for AI, CT, MRI and the radiology staffing shortage
Siemens Healthineers inks 10-year, $105M imaging value partnership with large medical center
CMS approves new MRI standards related to remote scanning
Radiologists are more accurate, confident when they know the full story

Around the web

Health Imaging
Nearly $800,000 settlement offered to family of man who died during MRI exam

The patient, who was being cared for in the ICU, was not accompanied or monitored by nursing staff during his exam, despite being sedated.

Cardiovascular Business
Global shortage of nuclear imaging isotopes may be over

The nuclear imaging isotope shortage of molybdenum-99 may be over now that the sidelined reactor is restarting. ASNC's president says PET and new SPECT technologies helped cardiac imaging labs better weather the storm.

Cardiovascular Business
‘A huge win’: CMS significantly increases Medicare payments for cardiac CT

CMS has more than doubled the CCTA payment rate from $175 to $357.13. The move, expected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cardiac CT, received immediate praise from imaging specialists.