Baltimore police shoot man accused of driving at officers during chase, investigators say
Baltimore police shot a man several times Tuesday night after he allegedly drove at officers during a chase, investigators said.
Police said officers were investigating a narcotics call around 8:15 p.m. in East Baltimore when they attempted to stop a vehicle. When the driver didn't pull over, police said a chase began through the city to a dead-end on Division Street in the Upton neighborhood in West Baltimore.
That's where the car reversed and attempted to charge the officers, who then fired at the vehicle, striking the driver, according to Baltimore Police Deputy Commissioner Kevin Jones.
"From what we are seeing now, the officers were in harm's way of the vehicle that charged at them, and they did discharge their weapons," Jones said.
No officers were hurt in the shooting.
The driver, who was only identified as a 37-year-old man, was taken to the hospital in stable condition. A passenger in the vehicle was not shot, but was taken into custody, Jones said.
"This unfortunate event is the result of someone trying to run over police officers after police officers were doing their jobs," Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said. "We will not and cannot allow people to run over our officers with their vehicles."
Mayor Brandon Scott addressed the shooting on Wednesday, saying, "We cannot have folks attempting to run over police officers, that's just something that we don't accept."
Second Baltimore area police shooting this month
This shooting is the second involving police officers in the Baltimore area in December.
Earlier this month, 31-year-old Howard Sye was shot and killed in Baltimore County. Officers were called to an apartment complex in Essex, where a woman had been stabbed during a dispute between a brother and sister. Baltimore County police said Sye was armed with a knife, and officers opened fire in response to his actions.
Investigators have named four responding officers. All of them have two years or less of service.
