Baltimore Police shoot, kill man who opened fire during attempted suicide call

Baltimore Police officers shot and killed a man who opened fire on them during an apparent behavioral health crisis Thursday morning in Southwest Baltimore, officials said.

It was the fourth fatal shooting by Baltimore Police this year.

Kevin Jones Sr., deputy police commissioner for operations, said officers went to the 800 block of Caton Avenue in the Saint Agnes neighborhood around 9:12 a.m. in response to calls about an attempted suicide involving someone who was armed.

As police arrived, a man began shooting at them, Jones told reporters at the scene near Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital. An officer reported shots coming toward their vehicle, but no officers were injured.

“One officer stopped their vehicle and began engaging with the individual, attempting to deescalate, creating distance and giving him verbal commands to get on the ground,” Jones said. “The individual ignored the commands communicated to him and continued to fire at officers, and our two officers returned fire, striking this individual.”

Jones said officers provided medical aid to the man until he was transported to Saint Agnes, where doctors pronounced him dead.

Investigators recovered a revolver from the shooting scene, according to police. Jones said it remained to be determined how many shots were fired and who called 911 to report the man was armed and threatening to take his life.

Jones said it was unclear whether the involved officers had received advanced training on responding to people in mental crisis.

Baltimore Police have made strides in training officers on handling such calls but remain hampered by limited resources. About 30% of officers have completed crisis intervention training, while all new officers complete behavioral health training in the police academy.

The agency’s response to people in mental crisis is an area of focus in its federally mandated court oversight. Those overseeing the department through the consent decree have acknowledged progress, but there have been instances when people in crisis ended up dead after interactions with Baltimore officers.

Last summer, Baltimore Police shot and killed a woman who had a knife during a behavioral health crisis. As authorities swarmed the scene Thursday, Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown announced officers would not face charges in the fatal shooting of 70-year-old Pytorcarcha Brooks.

Investigators with the attorney general’s office’s Independent Investigations Division, which is statutorily empowered to probe all deaths involving police and prosecute the cases it deems warrant charges, were at the scene Thursday.

A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office declined further comment.

In Southwest Baltimore, police blocked off a long stretch of Wilkens Avenue near the hospital. Officers in SWAT gear were at the scene.

Jones said emergency officials worked with Saint Agnes Hospital to direct ambulances to other hospitals because of the large police response.

A hospital spokesperson declined to say whether the facility was placed on lockdown.

“All security protocols were followed,” Megan Garrett said in an email. “Patient care was not impacted.”

Carroll Park Healthcare at 3330 Wilkens Ave. was placed on lockdown when the shooting happened. Residents and staff remained inside as of 11 a.m.

The facility is a few feet from where the shooting unfolded outside. A woman came out and said the company would not comment.

Jess Voss, who lives in the area, said she got a call from a neighbor telling her that a man with a gun was walking toward Wilkens Avenue.

Voss said the gunman emerged from the Saint Agnes campus and was heading toward police. Officers yelled for the man to drop his gun and said he would be all right if he did, she said. But the man did not.

Voss said she heard a series of shots. She did not know who fired first, but when she looked again the man was on the ground “bleeding profusely.”

Officials have not identified the man, with Jones saying investigators needed to notify his family and investigate further. Nor did they name the officers who shot the man.

Baltimore Police and the attorney general’s office typically release such information in the days following a deadly police shooting, along with footage of the fatal encounter captured by the involved officers’ body cameras.

In a post on X, the union that represents Baltimore Police officers said its president, Mike Mancuso, and attorneys were on their way to the scene “to assist the officers.”

If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, call or text 988 to contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

This story has been updated.