Off-Duty Baltimore Cop's Fatal Shooting of Man Ruled Self-Defense

LINTHICUM HEIGHTS, MD — Authorities say no charges will be filed against an off-duty Baltimore City Police officer who shot and killed a robbery suspect last month.

Baltimore Officer John Bilheimer fired his weapon five times, striking a homeless man carrying what authorities said was a realistic-looking toy gun. Bilheimer believed that his life, and that of others in the area, was threatened and acted in self-defense when firing his weapon, State’s Attorney Wes Adams said Wednesday.

The shooting happened about 1:30 a.m. Dec. 19 in the 100 block of Homewood Road in Linthicum Heights. The off-duty officer told Anne Arundel County Police he was in the area when the robbery suspect approached him with a handgun. Bilheimer shot Edel Cato Moreland, 32, of no fixed address, four times in the torso.

Adams said that his office and the Anne Arundel County Police Department investigated the circumstances surrounding the shooting.

“It is tragic when any type of altercation ends in death. In this case, we looked at the facts, and the evidence supports a clear case of self-defense,” Adams said in a statement.

Officer Bilheimer acted in an appropriate manner to protect lives, Adams said.

Moreland reportedly ran from the scene but collapsed on the street a short distance away. An autopsy determined he died at the scene from four gunshot wounds to the mid- and upper body.

Moreland’s gun was found at the scene and determined to be a realistic looking “all black toy gun resembling a revolver,” police said.

Bilheimer is an 18-year veteran assigned to the Baltimore department’s Special Operations Section.