HOWARD COUNTY, Md. — Body-worn camera footage released Monday shows Howard County police officers pleading with a suicidal armed man to drop his weapon before they shot and killed him earlier this month.
The entire exchange lasts less than two minutes between officers' first contact with Alex LaMorie and the deadly shooting.
LaMorie, an autistic man, had recently moved into Patuxent Commons, a building dedicated to supporting the independence of adults with disabilities and had not yet flagged his address.
According to police, the 25-year-old had initially called 911 to report he was the victim of an extortion scam and threatened to hurt himself.
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For more than nine minutes in the early morning hours of March 1 officers search LaMorie's apartment and the stairwell for him, unsuccessfully. Dispatch tells officers on scene LaMorie had been spotted across the street, and at about 12:18 a.m. PFC Joseph Riebau and another unidentified officer head that way.
About two minutes later: "This guy's coming at us with a knife," can be heard over dispatch.
It's Riebau, a 10-year veteran of the force, who makes contact with LaMorie outside in the parking lot and can be heard attempting to de-escalate the situation. LaMorie is barefoot and wearing only a shorts and a t-shirt despite the frigid temperatures outside.
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Riebau tells LaMorie: "Drop the knife... It's OK, we can fix this. It's a common scam... Can you please drop the knife and we can talk about this?"
LaMorie replied, "I can't do that, man."
"Come on, it's really not this bad. Listen, I've had this call a dozen times," Riebau said.
"I don't care, man. I don't care. I don't want to live anymore. I want to be free of my pain, man. I want to be free of my pain. Go ahead!," LaMorie responded.
After Riebau told LaMorie nobody wanted to hurt him, LaMorie laughed, saying, "I know that."
Meanwhile Officer Cody Bostic, a six-year-veteran and Officer Joel Rodriguez, a two-year veteran, who had been keeping an eye on LaMorie's apartment rush to get downstairs. In the elevator, Bostic asks Rodriguez if he had a taser, to which Rodriguez replied, "No... the new guy has a taser though."
Moments later, they join the other officers outside as LaMorie begins to walk towards them with the knife still in hand.
The officers repeatedly command LaMorie to "stop," with Riebau pleading, "Please don't make me do this" as they slowly back away. At one point LaMorie can be heard saying "no."
Seconds before three officers discharge their weapons at LaMorie, Riebau says "we're getting cornered."
They fire several rounds, sending LaMorie to the ground where he begins to moan and bleed out.
Following the shooting, officers continue to command him to drop the knife. After about 40 seconds, they handcuff LaMorie, remove the weapon and begin to provide medical aid. He died at the scene.
In a press conference nearly two weeks after the shooting, Howard County Police Chief Gregory Der said the department was working to identify the person or persons behind the scam.
No arrests have been made.
The footage can be viewed here.
Please be advised, the video contains graphic material that may be disturbing and is not suitable for all viewers.
