BALTIMORE – A Baltimore police officer is recovering in the hospital after being shot in East Baltimore on Friday afternoon.
He and several offices were responding to a behavioral health crisis around noon when those shots were fired.
“A struggle ensued when he tried to stop it. During the struggle, he was able to take a gun that he had on him and shot one of our officers in the leg,” shared BPD Deputy Commissioner Richard Worley Jr.
Crime scene tape and evidence markers surrounded a home on East Chase Street where authorities say a suspect was in that home that he did not belong to.
“I called the neighbor and she told me that the young man had left. He wanted to kill his mother. He was trying to shoot his mom,” Rose Early shared.
RELATED: Baltimore police officer was shot Friday afternoon while investigating a behavioral health crisis
She was closing up when it all fell apart, she says the incident was the culmination of many before, happening behind closed doors.
“His mom said he trashed the house and she had two big screen TVs, he messed them up, stuff like that. That was something that they handled internally,” she told WMAR2 News.
Police say a family member called them shortly after noon and showed them a valid order of protection.
Neighbors tell us that the protection order was issued because the 19-year-old’s mother feared for her life.
“I’m really sorry for her because I’m sure, she knows the details, but she’s been going through this for a while,” Early added.
When officers entered to make an arrest, they say he tried to escape and pulled out a gun, shooting the officer in the thigh.
Police say a second officer who was still in field training at the time was able to treat his injuries and transport him to the hospital and the suspect was taken into custody without any shots being fired by BPD.
police provide update on officer’s shooting
“Another example of an officer doing a fabulous job in a very dangerous situation with an armed individual,” Worley told reporters.
But the looming concern for neighbors is ‘how and why did the suspect have a gun in the first place when it is apparent he had been battling mental health issues’.
Weapons, what are you going to do with the weapons? Each and everyone has weapons. It’s sad, it’s very sad. But what can be done about it? Because people can get them too easily,” Early said.
So far, the suspect has not been identified and is currently undergoing psychiatric evaluation. It is not yet known if the shooter will be charged…
As for the officer, he is out of surgery recovering in stable condition.
The mayor’s office sent WMAR-2 News this statement:
“This afternoon, Baltimore Police Officers responded to a home in the 1100 block of E. Chase Street for a mental health crisis. Upon entering the home and told by a relative that a family member was mentally ill , officers encountered an adult male exhibiting violent behavior. When officers attempted to restrain the male, he fired a gun and struck an officer in the leg. Fortunately, the officer’s injury is not believed to be life-threatening.
“Each day, our officers risk their lives to protect and serve the people of Baltimore, and on a day like this, we are not only reminded of how dangerous this line of work can be, but we are also extremely grateful for the work they do.” our officers are doing to keep our communities safe. I want to thank the officers for providing help and apprehending the suspect. Behavioral health challenges are a very real thing for our community, and it is imperative that services are available to those who care most. they need.”
Mayor Brandon Scott
window.fbAsyncInit = function() {
FB.init({
appId : ‘215133865190’,
xfbml : true,
version : ‘v2.9’
});
};
(function(d, s, id){
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) {return;}
js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;
js.src = “https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js”;
js.async = true;
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
.
