Police: Officer drew gun in haunted house

ESSEX, Md., Oct. 27 (UPI) -- Authorities in Maryland said an off-duty police officer was arrested for pulling his handgun and pointing it at the chest of an actor in a haunted house.

Baltimore County police said Baltimore Police Department Sgt. Eric Michael Janik, 36, pointed his gun at Michael Brian Morrison, 32, who was dressed as "Leatherface" from "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," while walking through "The House of Screams" in Essex with a female city police officer and his 9-year-old daughter just after 10 p.m. Sunday, the Baltimore Sun reported Tuesday.

County police said Janik, who smelled of alcohol and was slurring his speech after the incident, initially denied pulling out his handgun during the haunted house tour but later told officers he drew the weapon and pointed it at the ground. However, multiple witnesses said he pointed the gun at Morrison.

Janik, who was suspended from the police department, was charged with first- and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment. He was released on $25,000 bail.