Latest news with #PytorcarchaBrooks
CBS News
19-07-2025
- CBS News
Concerns over mental health crisis response after two deaths in Baltimore by police encounters
Two Baltimore families are grieving after their loved ones died following encounters with police. Loved ones of Pytorcarcha Brooks held her funeral Friday, and the Maryland attorney general's office has now identified 31-year-old Dontae Melton Jr. as the man who died in police custody more than three weeks ago. A community association president has expressed serious concerns about the response to people having a mental health crisis. WJZ spoke to Janet Bailey, the president of Laburt Improvement Community Association, as she headed to the funeral of 70-year-old Pytorcarcha Brooks. On June 25th, police went into Brooks' home, tased, then shot and killed her, according to authorities. They said she posed a threat with a knife. Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said Brooks pulled a knife, disregarded police commands, and attacked officers with the weapon. Worley said officers tried to use a Taser on Brooks, but it was ineffective, and she kept advancing toward them with the knife. According to police, one officer fell, and Brooks charged at him with the knife, prompting another officer to fire two shots at her. Brooks was pronounced dead at a hospital. "I cried knowing this woman had been struggling with mental illness for a long time—and the way she died. The way she died! It didn't have to be like that," Bailey said. "70 years old. It just didn't." They had been called to that home at least 20 times in the months before that deadly encounter. "We need a team out here who can go in and talk to the people who have these issues. That's what we need. Not somebody who is going to shoot them, but somebody who can talk to them and talk them down from wherever they're at," Bailey said. "I thought that's what it was supposed to be after the consent decree and the Freddie Gray and all this. What happened? Somebody dropped the ball somewhere down the line, and now, here up in West Baltimore, we are paying the cost." She told the members of the Public Safety Committee, "I still can't see how you justify Ms. Brooks and Mr. Melton being killed in West Baltimore." "This incident is particularly painful because the individual involved was clearly experiencing a behavioral health crisis. We have taken significant steps to strengthen our behavioral health response system and 911 diversion program in the city of Baltimore with the goal of sending the most appropriate response to a situation, not just the fastest or most familiar," Mayor Brandon Scott said after the release of the body camera videos. "We have made real progress on this front and seen the positive impact in the lives of those we serve. But we know there is more to do. Incidents like this strengthen my commitment to building systems that can manage the volume of crisis calls we receive with the intentionality, care, and urgency our residents deserve." The mayor also said, "Unfortunately, not every call can be handled by crisis response teams, especially when there are threats of violence or reasonable concerns for safety. That being said, significant questions remain about the sequence of events that took place in this incident and decisions that were made. As the investigation unfolds, we will evaluate every piece of this incident to identify whether changes need to be made to ensure an outcome like this never happens again. I will be in constant contact with Commissioner Worley as that process unfolds." WJZ Investigates has extensively covered the case of Dontae Melton Jr. Police restrained him, the attorney general's office said, for his own safety at West Franklin Street and North Franklintown Road on June 24th. Because of a reported failure with the city's communication system, a medic never came. "My plea is for the people who are in charge of these systems to get it right. My plea is that another family will never have to endure this kind of pain," Melton's mother Eleshiea Goode told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren. "To know that my son died alone when he had so many family and friends, and everybody who had been there in a second had we known." After 23 days, the attorney general's office released the names of ten officers in the case. The body-worn camera videos have yet to be released. "They're slow walking this thing. They're slow walking," Bailey said. "They're hoping to sweep this under the rug, and you'll forget it. We won't forget." The attorney general's office said they have 20 business days to release the body camera video. They said that release can be delayed for various reasons, including if they need more time for the investigation. The Baltimore police union Friday criticized the release of the officers' names. "The recent release of the names of officers involved in the Dontae Melton Jr. case sets a dangerous precedent with far-reaching consequences. This was not a dynamic incident like a police officer involved shooting or similar incident," FOP3 President Mike Mancuso said in a statement posted to X. "This incident is all on body worn camera! This is clearly a mental health incident where the police officers pleaded for help from other city agencies, and that help never came. If AG Brown felt the need to release names in an obvious mental health case, why not release the names of all involved in the breakdown of services from the beginning all the way to the hospital staff? Weren't they all involved in this incident? Singling out only the officers suggests that this is unbalanced and is politically motivated." The attorney general's Independent Investigations Division "continues to investigate the circumstances of the police-involved, in-custody death," AG Anthony Brown's office said. "Anyone with information about this incident, including cell phone or private surveillance video, is asked to contact the IID at (410) 576-7070."
CBS News
02-07-2025
- CBS News
Protesters rally at Baltimore Police Headquarters over recent deaths involving officers
A group of demonstrators protested outside of Baltimore City Police Headquarters on Tuesday to raise their voices against recent officer shootings and in-custody deaths. In the past two weeks, there have been three deaths at the hands of police in Baltimore. Police and neighbors said the responses involved mental health issues. "We are here to protest the recent string of BPD killings and the recent activity of BPD," said Carrington Scott, with the People's Power Assembly. "We are out here against police violence, the state of oppression against the Black community and all communities." Deadly incidents involving Baltimore police On Wednesday, June 25, Baltimore police officers shot and killed 70-year-old Pytorcarcha Brooks, who they say lunged at officers with a knife during a mental health episode at her home on Mosher Street. Commissioner Richard Worley said officers attempted to take her into custody for her safety, but when she didn't comply with orders, she was tased and then shot. Worley said there have been more than 20 calls to the home this year, including for behavioral health crises. On Tuesday, June 24, a man police said was having a mental health crisis in West Baltimore was put into restraints, became unresponsive, and died at the hospital. Investigators with the Maryland Attorney General's Office said officers restrained a man with handcuffs and leg restraints. The officer tried to restrain him because he said he was going in and out of traffic and was in danger, according to the Maryland Attorney General's Office. At some point, he lost consciousness and was taken in a police car to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. On June 17, Baltimore vendor B.J. Abdullah, who police say pulled a gun and fired at officers in the Upton area, was shot and killed by officers. Police said Abdullah fired three shots while officers fired 38 rounds. Abdullah, 36, was a well-known arabber who sold produce on a horse-drawn cart in the city, according to community members. Baltimore Police released body-worn camera video from three officers who shot and killed Abdullah. The Maryland Attorney General's Independent Investigations Division is looking into all three cases. In all instances, protesters argued that police could have handled the situations better. "It's a war against the Black community but also mental illness," Scott said. "Instead of activating proper resources to take care of the community, they'd rather just kill us." Scott added, "The best results today are to show the community we are out here, we care, the fight is going on for people to join us because justice isn't something that is given, justice is fought for. It takes a mass movement of people to show that we are out here and able to fight back in any way possible." Officer is accused of raping teen girl On Tuesday, WJZ obtained charging documents that detailed a Baltimore police officer's arrest for allegedly raping a 16-year-old, who he said he was dating. Curlon Edwards has been charged with first- and second-degree rape, assault, reckless endangerment and false imprisonment. He was ordered to be held without bail, according to the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office.
