This story created a furor earlier today, showing some of the inherent flaws in witness testimony, even from those people who you would think should know how to report such as reporters, not to mention those who come with virulently anti-police attitudes.
BALTIMORE (AP) — Days after riots crippled Baltimore, tensions again escalated Monday after police said they arrested a man who appeared to be armed. The arrest drew a crowd of protesters who chanted, “Black community, control the police!”
Lt. Col. Melvin Russell said police pursued a man who was spotted on surveillance cameras and appeared to be armed with a handgun. Police said the man was taken into custody after a brief chase, during which a gunshot was heard.
Russell said that police never fired their weapons and that no one was shot. Police recovered a handgun loaded with three rounds, one of which was spent. The suspect was not injured and did not want to go to a hospital, but was taken in an ambulance anyway, he said.
Sen. Catherine Pugh, a Democat whose district includes the area where the situation occurred, said she went to a hospital to check on the man. She said she asked him if he was OK, and he told her he was.
“There were no visible injuries,” Pugh said, though she didn’t know what happened to him. The man was visibly upset, but he was able to see his mother before he was released to police, who arrested him, Pugh said. The man was able to walk to a police van, where he was strapped in and taken to Central Booking, she said.