Police identify officer, man shot during downtown Baltimore parking enforcement incident

A Baltimore police officer and a 29-year-old man who was shot during a parking enforcement incident in downtown Baltimore on Saturday evening have been identified.

Officer Samuel Thomas, a 20-year veteran of the Baltimore Police Department, shot Tyrik Braxton of Columbia after police said Braxton struck the officer while awaiting a tow truck in the 200 block of N. Eutaw Street.

Police said Thomas issued a citation and requested a tow truck for a vehicle with expired and suspended license plate tags. The vehicle's owner and another person later arrived at the vehicle.

The owner initially denied that the vehicle belonged to him before Thomas told him he had checked the records and confirmed that the vehicle was being towed, according to police.

Police said the owner then got into the vehicle and started it. Thomas requested a patrol vehicle to block the vehicle, but the driver moved forward and struck the officer, causing him to fall onto the hood.

The driver then reversed and accelerated, carrying the officer on the hood of the vehicle, police said. Thomas fired three rounds into the vehicle, striking the driver.

Braxton remains in critical condition, according to police.

Thomas was released from the hospital after suffering neck and back injuries. He has been placed on routine administrative leave.

"The simple thing is to comply with the officer and not try to get in the car and drive away. Your license is revoked. You shouldn't even be driving," Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said. 

Investigators with the Special Investigations Response Team, or SIRT, are investigating the incident.