Tri-Cities man wanted to die by suicide when he pulled the trigger in a Kennewick store

A Tri-Cities man planned to die by suicide when he asked to hold a revolver at a sporting goods store last month.

But he was foiled when he loaded the wrong bullets and tried to pull the trigger while inside the store, according to court records.

Steven D. Greenwald, 60, remains in the Benton County jail, charged with reckless endangerment and unlawful gun possession.

When he was arrested last month, investigators thought he had been aiming the loaded gun and pulling the trigger at employees at the Sportsman’s Warehouse in Kennewick, according to court records.

At the time, no employees apparently saw what happened.

It wasn’t until employees discovered two unspent bullets inside a revolver on Feb. 5, prompting an investigation by store managers and police.

Surveillance cameras caught Greenwald walking into the store on Feb. 4, where he grabbed two .45 caliber bullets from a box of ammunition, court records said.

He walked up to the gun sales counter and asked to see a .45 caliber revolver.

“While the employee was distracted, he knelt down and loaded the two rounds in the gun,” according to court documents. “He then appeared to pull the trigger multiple times.”

At one point, it looked like the gun was pointed at one of the employees while Greenwald was trying to fire. Police said that he appeared to be oblivious of the employees.

What Greenwald hadn’t realized is that he had grabbed the wrong type of ammo. The bullets were designed for a semi-automatic handgun rather than a revolver.

Police released Greenwald’s picture to the public and several people identified him.

Greenwald’s statement

Detectives caught up with him on Feb. 8 in Pasco.

He told officers that he planned to die by suicide when he went into the store because he was tired of the voices in his head.

He wanted to use a gun because it was the way his mother had died by suicide 35 years earlier. But because he has a previous felony conviction for second-degree burglary, he’s prevented from buying and owning a firearm, according to court records.

Still, he went to the Sportsman’s Warehouse on Canal Drive and loaded the gun. He told investigators he intended to fire a test round and then use the second one on himself, said court documents.

“He had no intentions to harm anyone else and did not intend to point the gun at anyone but himself,” court records said.

The video surveillance appears to back up Greenwald’s story, according to court documents.

After loading the gun, he pointed it away from the employees. When one crossed his path, the Greenwald was looking at the gun and trying to make it work, said investigators.

His trial for reckless endangerment and unlawful gun possession was set for April. His bail is set at $100,000.

This story was originally published March 21, 2022 at 12:57 PM.