Activists are enraged after a Baltimore police officer killed a robber whose shotgun was not loaded. The suspect was in the act of robbing a 7-Eleven when the off-duty cop just happened to arrive on the scene.
As the cop pulled up in his car, the 20-year-old suspect bolted out of the store with $26 from the cash register. The cop -- a 17-year veteran of the police force -- saw the suspect and quickly opened fire on him, killing him.
The incident occurred just after 3 a.m. at a 7-Eleven on the corner of Harford Road and Glenmore Avenue, near Hamilton.
Police released surveillance video to the local media that showed the suspect pointing a shotgun at the store clerk as the officer pulled up out front.
Police Commissioner Kevin Davis defended the officer's actions. Davis said the officer showed “presence of mind and grace under pressure,” when he immediately activated his body cam as he pulled up.
Davis said the cop's quick thinking allowed his body cam to automatically save a 30-second loop of footage from before the cam was activated -- allowing investigators to see exactly what he saw before he drew his weapon.
It was later discovered that the suspect's shotgun was not loaded.
Police spokesman T.J. Smith said the officer followed proper procedure by quickly gunning down the suspect. He said the cop “could have been blasted at basically point-blank range with a shotgun” himself if he had hesitated.
“These are the split-second decisions that officers are forced to deal with,” said Smith.