Just a few weeks after the nationwide protest in the United States against the killing of Black men by the police, another Black woman and her 5-year-old son were shot by the Baltimore County Police during a raid over driving offences in Randallstown, Maryland.
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The child’s mother, Korryn Gaines, 23, was killed by police following an hours-long standoff after she pointed a shotgun at officers and threatened to kill them, police said. Her five-year-old son was with her throughout the negotiations, and the boy was wounded in the arm during an exchange of gunfire between police and Gaines, authorities said.
At a news conference Tuesday, Chief Jim Johnson said Facebook suspended Gaines’ account during the negotiations at their request.
One police officer fired a shot and Gaines fired back with double-aught buckshot.
“They’re trying to kill us”, he responds.
“Do you want to go out there?” she asks later.
He left the apartment with a one-year-old boy before the stand-off and was arrested.
Gaines’ mother, Rhonda Dormeus, told The Baltimore Sun her daughter ignored Courtney’s pleas to surrender.
Gaines then refused to give police her license and registration, according to the report, saying they had no right to stop her. Police say she told them that if they wanted her to leave the auto, they would have to “murder” her, according to the report. Several times she pointed the shotgun at officers. My niece is a good person; I never knew her to be a rowdy person, he told the Baltimore Sun. “They threw me a charge too late”, she wrote.
The second of the videos, is Gaines conversing with her son. She called lead poisoning Baltimore’s “toxic legacy” – a still-unfolding tragedy with which she says the city has yet to come to terms.
Ms Gaines’ warrant stemmed from charges during a March 10th traffic stop, including disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Then around 3 p.m., Gaines pointed her weapon at a tactical officer and said, “If you don’t leave, I’m going to kill you”, according to authorities.
An officer shot at her and Gaines fired two shots, but missed the officers, who returned fire and killed her, police said.
A video collected by CBS Baltimore shows a very quiet scene, in which a woman, presumably Gaines, is whispering to her son (his face is blurred out) as what looks like a man in a SWAT uniform stands in her doorway, but not entirely in the house.
Police said she was pulled over because instead of a number plate, she had a cardboard tag that said: “Any government official who compromises this pursuit of happiness and right to travel will be held criminally responsible and fined, as this is a natural right and freedom”. She told the boy the officers were going to “try to fight” her and encouraged him to keep filming if she could not.
Her 1-year-old daughter was also in the vehicle, who starts crying, only for Gaines to tell her to stop.
Facebook has restored Gaines’ social media pages, but a pair of videos that violated Facebook’s standards have been blocked from public view.
According to the tech company’s policies, requests from law enforcement to suspend accounts may be granted in cases where there is a substantial risk of harm.
The boy, who is in stable condition is being treated at the John Hopkin’s Hospital in Baltimore. Police are not sure whether he was hit by gunfire or shrapnel. He was released from custody on his own recognizance, she said.
Authorities said the officers involved in the incident will be placed on administrative leave. It is not yet known whether the child was shot by agents or by Gaines, CBS Baltimore reports.
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The question is why there is no body camera footage from the cops, since police officers in Baltimore have been equipped with body cams since May. Courtney was wanted for assault while Gaines was wanted on a bench warrant for failure to appear in court.
