Man Killed After Pointing Gun At Officer: Baltimore Police

BALTIMORE, MD — A Baltimore police officer fatally shot a 33-year-old man who pointed a gun at him on Gwynns Falls Parkway Sunday night, according to authorities. Officials said the suspect was pronounced deceased at a local hospital. He has been identified as Billy Louis Rucker, of the unit block of South Bernice Avenue in Baltimore.

The incident started when Rucker allegedly took off from a traffic stop on Westwood Avenue, police said; the road runs parallel to North Avenue.

When police tried to stop the red SUV for a traffic violation on Westwood, Smith said the vehicle "fled from officers at the scene" and was followed by the police helicopter, which happened to be overhead at the time.

Rucker was purportedly unaware that the helicopter was following him, and two people got out of the SUV before "the vehicle was discarded, basically, in an alleyway," Smith said. On Allendale Road, the driver and a woman who had also been inside started walking away from the vehicle.

They were "trying to blend in" because they knew police were looking for them, according to Smith, who said when an officer attempted to stop him, the suspect ran. The woman did not run, and officers quickly took her into custody, Smith said.

The driver, later identified as Rucker, "went through a yard, then jumped over a fence, then ran into the median" on Gwynns Falls Parkway, where the shooting happened, one to two blocks from the alley where the SUV was left, Smith said.

"...he had a gun in his hand; it appears that he turned and pointed that gun toward the officer," Smith reported. "The officer then discharged his firearm, striking the suspect."

The officer fired multiple times, and Rucker fired once at close range, Smith said at a press conference Monday afternoon.

The shooting took place at 8:15 p.m. on Sunday, and Rucker was taken to a local hospital, where police said he was pronounced deceased.

The officer has been placed on routine administrative leave, which is normal after a police-involved shooting. He has been with the Baltimore Police Department for at least four years, according to Smith, who reported the officer was assigned to the northwest district.

When found, officials said Rucker was in possession of two guns, one real and another a replica.

"The replica gun was inside a bag, and the real gun was underneath his person," Smith said at a press briefing Sunday evening.

Smith said the suspect "is known to law enforcement."

Still image from video of the Jan. 28 media briefing from Baltimore Police/Periscope.