Former Atwater code enforcement officer faces misdemeanor concealed firearm charge

Atwater’s former city code enforcement Officer Mike Teater will face a misdemeanor charge of carrying a concealed firearm, the District Attorney’s Office confirmed this week.

The charge stems from a December 2014 incident at an Atwater mobile home park co-managed by Teater. An Atwater police officer was called by Teater to the Camilla Trailer Park to deal with two trespassers on the property. After the trespassers left the area, the officer noticed a handgun inside Teater’s jacket pocket.

The incident happened 10 days before Teater was fired by city officials – the second time in four years. The 54-year-old told the Merced Sun-Star that his termination was “retaliation” for filing a harassment claim in October against Police Chief Frank Pietro and the Atwater Police Department’s administrative supervisor, Tyna Lamison.

Teater was also the subject of an internal investigation on suspicion of timesheet fraud after a supervisor accused him of not reporting accurate hours on his timecard as a city code enforcement officer. Teater said he’s hired an attorney to pursue harassment and wrongful termination claims against the city.

Teater could face six months in jail if found guilty of the misdemeanor charge. He does not have a concealed weapon permit issued by the Atwater Police Department, a police report said.

In an interview Thursday, Teater said he was surprised that the District Attorney’s Office filed criminal charges against him. Teater said he was within his rights to carry a weapon because the trailer park is his place of employment.

“I don’t have a CCW and I don’t need one because the penal code says I can carry a weapon in my residence or my place of business,” Teater said. “What they want to do is slander and discredit my name and reputation because I’m suing them.”

According to the police report, Officer Jason DaSilva said he noticed an “easily visible” silver semiautomatic handgun poking out of Teater’s leather jacket while at the trailer park Dec. 13, 2014. “Upon seeing the firearm, I inquired from Teater what caliber it was and he stated it was a 9 millimeter handgun,” DaSilva wrote.

Teater told the officer that he had been “threatened” while conducting business in the trailer park. Because Teater was a city employee at the time of the incident and not making threats, DaSilva said he decided not to inspect the firearm.

The situation was reported to upper administration, the report said. Atwater Detective David Brum called Teater a month later to obtain a statement. Teater told the detective he would need to consult with his attorney first, later saying he was advised not to speak with police officials about the issue.

Teater said Thursday that city officials are continuing to harass him by denying his unemployment claim, firing his son who also worked for the city and contacting the Franchise Tax Board to report that he didn’t file his 2013 taxes.

“I haven’t done anything wrong and yet I am being persecuted by the city of Atwater,” he said. “They are doing everything they can to hurt me in any way possible – financially, emotionally and harming my reputation.”

Teater’s arraignment is scheduled for 8:15 a.m. April 7.

This story was originally published March 12, 2015 at 6:55 PM with the headline "Former Atwater code enforcement officer faces misdemeanor concealed firearm charge."