MONTICELLO, NY — Detective Ryan Fridlich of the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office suffered injury to his entire left hand from a flashbang on Friday night, Aug. 30. 

The device went off in his hand while the sheriff’s office was assisting the Village of Liberty Police Department in executing a search warrant. 

“The circumstances and role of everyone is being investigated, everything is being reviewed,” Undersheriff Eric Chaboty told the River Reporter on Sept. 5. He says the office is working on a press release, and that he plans to discuss the event at the Sullivan County Legislature’s Public Safety and Law Enforcement committee meeting on Sept. 12. 

Fridlich was still recovering at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, NY, on Thursday, Sept. 5. He told the River Reporter from the hospital that he had been advised against providing comment without first consulting his public information officer or attorney. But, he said, “I’m doing fine.”

Flashbangs, also known as stun grenades or flash grenades, are explosive devices that produce blinding flashes of light and a sudden loud noise to temporarily distract or disperse people. It can be thrown by hand or projected.

Do deputies receive training in operating these devices?

“Yes, there is training,” Chaboty said—at least one in-house training session per month for all members in the field, using all their equipment. 

The sheriff’s office is not accredited by the NYS Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), which offers the NYS Law Enforcement Accreditation Program, which recognizes any agency that meets or exceeds “general expectation of quality in the field,” according to the DCJS website. The program’s purpose is to “increase the effectiveness and efficiency of law enforcement agencies utilizing existing personnel, equipment and facilities to the extent possible,” and to “ensure the appropriate training of law enforcement personnel.”

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct Ryan Fridlich's title to detective from  deputy. Fridlich served as a deputy until May 2022 when he was promoted to detective.