By Kevin E. Dayhoff, December 26, 2012 http://www.baltimoresun.com/explore/carroll/news/ph-ce-police-shooting-1226-20121226,0,6149880.story
The news comes at a time when many have grown weary of bad news. Not even the unexpected late snowfall on Christmas Eve could overcome the heavy hearts of many just weeks after the December 14 shooting death of 26 people, most of them children, in an elementary school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut.
Then on Christmas Eve, much of the local news media reported that a gunman in upstate New York allegedly set fire to his house and ambushed and killed two volunteer firefighters and wounded two more who were responding to the fire.
Bad news involving firefighters, police officers, and emergency medical personnel always travels quickly in Carroll County that has long been understood as being the home of many of Maryland’s first responders.
Late in the evening on Christmas Day, Greg Shipley, a spokesperson for the Maryland State Police confirmed the incident and released additional details that a Taneytown police officer had shot and killed a man who had threatened the lives of several police officers in the otherwise peaceful northwestern Carroll County community.
Police say that Edward L. Becker, Jr., 26, of the unit-block of Commerce Drive, Taneytown, Md, was pronounced dead at the Carroll Hospital Center, as a result of the incident.
According to Shipley, “A Carroll County man armed with a hammer and acting disorderly was fatally wounded by a Taneytown Police Department officer when he failed to surrender and advanced threateningly at the officer.
The state police say that shortly after 8:30 p.m. on Christmas Day, “the parents of Becker called 911 and reported he had been drinking and was acting disorderly. Becker’s father reported his son was smashing windows out of his truck with a hammer…”
Three Taneytown police department officers responded to the area of the address on Commerce Street, according the police report. At the scene they “saw Becker walking down the street toward them.
“They exited their vehicles and began shouting commands to Becker to drop the hammer and surrender. Becker continued to approach. The officers, who were all in uniform and marked patrol cars, retreated down the street and positioned themselves behind their police cars.
“The investigation indicates the officers continued to shout commands to Becker to drop the hammer and surrender. Becker ignored the commands and continued to approach the officers…
After Becker got to within approximately an arm’s length of an officer and raised the hammer, one of the officers fired his service weapon, striking Becker.
Police at the scene administered first aid and called emergency medical personnel to the scene.
“The officer involved is a four and one-half year veteran of the Taneytown Police Department…,” say police. The Taneytown police officer has been placed on routine administrate leave by Taneytown Police Chief William Tyler, “which is procedure in police-involved shootings.”
Tyler “requested the police-involved shooting be investigated by the Maryland State Police homicide unit and troopers from the Westminster Barrack responded to the scene to conduct the investigation, according to Shipley.
The investigation is continuing. Upon completion, it will be forwarded to the Carroll County State's Attorney's Office for review...
By Kevin E. Dayhoff http://www.baltimoresun.com/explore/carroll/news/ph-ce-police-shooting-1226-20121226,0,6149880.story
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