Korryn Gaines Lawsuit Grows, Allegations Added: Report

RANDALLSTOWN, MD — The relatives of a woman fatally shot by police in her Randallstown apartment over the summer have reportedly amended their lawsuit against the Baltimore County Police Department.

Police said that a tactical officer fired at Korryn Gaines, 23, after she allegedly threatened him with a Mossberg shotgun during a barricade on Sulky Court in Randallstown on Aug. 1.

The shooter was identified by police as Officer Ruby. Based on a union agreement, police in Baltimore County are identified by last name only.

Relatives of Gaines filed a $4 million suit against the Baltimore County Police Department and Ruby in September — for $2 million apiece — claiming excessive force, gross negligence, wrongful death and suppression of speech.

On Tuesday, The Baltimore Sun reported that Officers Dowell and Griffin were added to the suit for allegedly going into the apartment without legal grounds.

Authorities said that police arrived around 9:40 a.m. to serve arrest warrants for Gaines and her boyfriend, 39-year-old Kareem K. Courtney.

Gaines was wanted for failing to appear related to a March 10 traffic stop when her Toyota Camry had no license plate. Courtney had a warrant related to an assault on Gaines; police later charged him with distributing heroin from the apartment.

Officers kicked in the door when Gaines would not come out, police said.

Attorneys for Courtney and Rhanda Gaines (the mother of Korryn Gaines) reportedly claim that police did not have legal grounds for entering the apartment, in part because Courtney did not live there.

About an hour after police arrived, Gaines said she would come out if the police put their guns down and backed up from her apartment, according to an account her neighbor provided through her attorneys. When police did not retreat, she told them to leave.

The deadly confrontation ended around 3 p.m. after police said Gaines pointed a shotgun at a tactical officer and threatened to shoot him. Authorities said there was an exchange of gunfire; Gaines fired two rounds from the shotgun, but did not strike police. Ruby shot her, officials said.

Her son — Kodi Gaines, 5 — was shot in the left cheek with a round fired by a tactical officer, police said.

After subpoenaing the state's attorney for additional documentation, attorneys for the Gaines family said they determined Ruby "blindly shot her through a kitchen wall" and fired his weapon "maliciously" out of frustration that the standoff had gone on so long as opposed to out of fear, according to WBAL. Attorneys reportedly alleged the officer showed disregard for human life, evidenced by the 23-year-old woman's death and her 5-year-old son being hit in the face and elbow in the shooting, requiring multiple surgeries.

Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger reported last month that charges would not be filed against Ruby, saying: "Criminal charges are not warranted" against the officer.

See Also:

• Officer Was Justified in Shooting Korryn Gaines: Baltimore County State's Attorney
• Family of Korryn Gaines Files $4M Suit After Fatal Shooting in Baltimore County
• No Charges to Be Filed Against Officer Who Killed Korryn Gaines: Report
• Police ID Officer Who Shot Korryn Gaines
• Boyfriend of Korryn Gaines Facing Drugs and Weapons Charges
• Woman Killed by Police Said They Would Have to 'Murder' Her
• 5-Year-Old Was Injured by Police in Randallstown Standoff: Officials
• Protesters Arrested at Cop Conference in Baltimore

Photo of Korryn Gaines from Baltimore County Police Department.