EUCLID, Ohio -- A Euclid police officer who pleaded guilty to firing a gun at a park while off-duty will return to work, his attorney said.

Officer Todd Gauntner, 29, of Willowick pleaded guilty earlier this month to discharging a firearm in an incident that happened Thanksgiving at Sims Park in Euclid, according to court records.

A Euclid Municipal Court judge ordered him to pay a $235 fine and to attend counseling, according to court records.

Charges of using a weapon while intoxicated and criminal trespassing were dismissed as part of a plea deal, defense attorney Robert M. Phillips said.

"He's paying his penance," Phillips said Monday.

Gauntner began a 90-day suspension Dec. 12 but could return to his job as a patrolman sometime in the next few weeks, Phillips said.

The city previously reached a a disciplinary agreement with Gauntner that would allow him to return to work if he met several conditions. The city denied a request to release a copy of the agreement because it references Gauntner's medical records, Euclid Law Director Kelley Sweeney said in January.

Sweeney directed questions about Gauntner's status to Euclid police Chief Thomas Brickman. Brickman did not respond to a request for comment Monday.

Gauntner was not using his department-issued gun when he fired shots into Lake Erie on Thanksgiving, Brickman said in January.

Witnesses reported hearing about a dozen shots fired at Sims Park just after 2 a.m. on Nov. 26. Officers arrived at the park's pier and found Gauntner and a woman, according to a police report.

Gauntner was holding two guns and said that he fired shots at the water. Gauntner told an officer he'd been drinking, the report says.

The woman told officers that Gauntner was "blowing off steam" by shooting at the water. Gauntner never threatened her, the woman said.

Officers took Gauntner to the Euclid Police Department, where he refused a breath test. He was then taken to Euclid Hospital for an evaluation.

Gauntner said at the time that he was dealing with the recent death of a family member. He is also a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served two tours of duty in Afghanistan, Phillips said last month.

Gauntner has been with the Euclid Police Department for two years and has no previous disciplinary issues, Brickman said. Documents included in Gauntner's personnel file show he has been commended for his role in several arrests over the past two years.