Keith McLeod was fatally shot by a Baltimore County police officer. (Twitter)
An unarmed 19-year-old man was shot dead by police in Baltimore County, Maryland, on Wednesday during a foot chase. The victim was identified on Friday as Keith Harrison McLeod.
Police said the officer fired at McLeod after “whipping his hand around and pointing it toward the officer, as if with a weapon.” McLeod was being chased by the officer after he was accused of trying to use a fake prescription to buy cough syrup at a pharmacy.
No weapons were found at the scene, police said. Video of the shooting was released on Friday.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Police Said McLeod ‘Repeatedly Told the Officer He Was Going to Kill Him’
Police Chief James Johnson said that witnesses heard the officer telling McLeod, “Don’t do this!” Johnson said McLeod told the officer repeatedly “I’m going to kill you.”
The video of the shooting was released on Friday (warning, the video below is graphic):
Police responded to the pharmacy on Main Street in Reisterstown at about 4:50 p.m. Police were called by the staff at the Nature Car pharmacy, which said a man had walkd in and gave them a forged prescription. McLeod was found in the parking lot outside the pharmacy and ran from the officer behind businesses across the street.
“A confrontation occurred between the officer and the suspect, and multiple shots were fired,” police said. The officer was not injured.
Police said witnesses told detectives they heard the officer repeatedly command McLeod to stop, and then heard him shouting profanities at the officer.
2. McLeod’s Is From Washington, D.C.
Chief Johnson addressing media on officer involved shooting that left 19 y/o dead @cbsbaltimore http://t.co/lVAzszzPdp
Not much information has been made public about McLeod, whose last known address was in Washington, D.C.
Police said he was trying to obtain Promethazine plus Codeine. Police say the cough syrup is often combined with alcohol to produce a high. McLeod was taken to Northwest Hospital and declared dead. He was shot three times.
Reisterstown, Maryland, is about 55 miles from D.C., and 25 miles from Baltimore.
3. After an Outcry From the Community, Police Released Video of the Shooting
After a delay in releasing the video, the local NAACP chapter and other activists took to social media to call for the department to make the video public. The video was released Friday evening.
“I don’t want to take the [the police account] at face value,” Tony Fugett, president of the Baltimore County NAACP chapter, told the Baltimore Sun. “If it vindicates the officer, I’d think they’d want to make it public.”
4. The Officer Has Been Placed on Administrative Leave
The Baltimore County Police said Officer David Earomirski, of Precinct 3/Franklin, has been placed on administrative leave after the shooting. He has worked with the department since December 10, 2005.
This is the first shooting he has been involved in, police said.
Police Chief Jim Johnson said Earomirski is “one of my finest officers.”
5. McLeod Is the Fourth Person Killed By Baltimore County Police This Year
According to the Baltimore Sun, McLeod is the fourth person killed by Baltimore County Police in 2015.
Baltimore County police have shot 6 people, killing 4 this yr.
Baltimore City police, who deal with far more crime, have shot 7, killing 1
The last shooting was in June, when police killed 41-year-old Spencer Lee McCain at a home in Owings Mills. Police said the officers believed McCain was armed, but he was not, according to the Sun.
