A POLICE firearms instructor who shot a colleague during a gun awareness training exercise is to face a Crown Court hearing.

Thames Valley Police constable David Micklethwaite shot civilian control room worker Keith Tilbury in the stomach with a Smith and Wesson .44 Magnum Revolver.

He and Thames Valley are accused of breaching health and safety regulations.

The first step of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecution took place at City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London today.

Micklethwaite, 52, who was suspended from firearms duty after the shooting, was remanded on unconditional bail to appear at Southwark Crown Court on July 15.

Mr Tilbury, 51, was shot at point blank range at Thames Valley Police headquarters in Kidlington, on May 30, 2007. He was sitting beside 10 colleagues in a classroom listening to the lecture when the gun went off.

He was seriously injured, with damage to his lungs, kidneys and bowel, and blast burns to his skin. He underwent a number of emergency operations and was unconscious in intensive care for two weeks.

Mr Tilbury has since launched a civil injury case against the force at the High Court claiming more than £300,000 compensation.