Newly released bodycam footage shows six officers shooting dead Maurice Daniels, 42, whose unmarked BB gun was mistaken for a pistol — and Maryland’s attorney general now holds the power to decide whether any of them face charges.
Six Baltimore police officers discharged more than 70 rounds at a suspected carjacker who was later found to have been holding a BB gun, body-worn camera footage released by the city’s police department on Friday has shown.
Maurice Daniels, 42, of Millersville, Maryland, was pronounced dead in hospital after the shooting, which happened in the Walbrook Junction area of the city shortly after 1am on Sunday 5 July. No officers were hurt.
Responsibility for the case now rests with the Independent Investigations Division (IID) of the Maryland attorney general’s office — a unit which, since its powers were expanded in 2023, can not only investigate deaths involving police but make the charging decision itself, rather than passing a report to local prosecutors.
The sequence of events began a day earlier in Towson, where a 2010 Dodge minivan was taken in an armed carjacking, according to Baltimore police. The force’s helicopter, Foxtrot, picked up the vehicle between about 1.25am and 1.30am on the Sunday, and The Baltimore Banner reported that the pursuit ended at roughly 1.41am on Clifton Avenue, near Dennison Street, where officers boxed the van in.
Describing the footage at a press conference on Friday, Commissioner Richard Worley said one officer was standing at the window holding only a glass-breaking tool, his firearm undrawn, when a colleague approaching from another angle saw what appeared to be a handgun inside and shouted “gun” three or more times. Police said Daniels had been compliant at first, with both hands raised, before lowering one of them — at which point the officer opened fire. Worley also noted that Daniels had opened the van door as officers closed in, then quickly shut and locked it.
Deputy Commissioner Brian Nadeau told reporters the BB gun bore none of the orange or yellow markings that would identify it as a replica, and that in the darkness the black weapon “looks just like a Colt 1911”.
The Baltimore Banner, which reviewed the released video, reported that an officer arriving after the gunfire pulled on a glove and reached into the minivan to retrieve the apparent weapon before first aid was given to Daniels. WBAL-TV reported that more than three dozen evidence markers were later visible on the road in the 3300 block of Clifton Avenue.
The IID has named the six officers involved as Charles Blackman, a six-year veteran; David Weldon and Antonio Groomes, both with five years’ service; Sergeant Kevin Rivera, an eight-year veteran; Darrius Hicklin, with three years on the force; and Al-Shakier Drake, who joined eight months ago. All are assigned to the department’s Operations Bureau and remain on administrative leave, a routine step in such cases, according to WJZ Investigates, the CBS affiliate in Baltimore. WJZ also reported that only one officer — a witness who did not fire — has so far given an account to investigators.
Worley described the recording as “difficult to watch” and said his thoughts remained with the Daniels family, adding: “This incident is concerning, and we remain dedicated to a full and thorough investigation.” He said he could not know what the officers were thinking, but believed they had acted in the way they thought was right.
Police say the videos were shown to Mr Daniels’ relatives and handed to the attorney general’s office. WJZ said its attempts to reach the family had gone unanswered.
One point of difference has already emerged in the official record. The IID’s first account said Foxtrot followed the minivan while marked ground units remained “close by”, and that officers “stopped the vehicle” — wording that contrasts with police characterisations of a high-speed chase, and which may prove relevant as the pursuit tactics come under scrutiny.
The Daniels case falls within a statewide system of mandatory independent inquiries created under Maryland’s 2021 police accountability reforms, which require the IID to examine every police-involved incident resulting in death or injuries likely to prove fatal. The division says it has carried out 88 such investigations since October 2021.
Recent Baltimore cases suggest a decision could be months away. A fatal shooting on 24 February this year was not concluded until 4 June, while a case from 10 March was closed on 19 May; in both, the attorney general declined to prosecute and published detailed findings and legal analysis.
As of 12 July, the attorney general’s office had announced no charging decision, saying only that the division “continues to investigate the circumstances” of the shooting.
