A 36-year-old man was shot in the leg by a Baltimore Police officer after charging at officers with knives and causing one to sustain a minor wound, police officials said during a news conference Saturday.
Police were patrolling the 2000 block of West Pratt Street near the neighborhoods of Ridgely’s Delight and Carrollton Ridge around 9 a.m. when they saw a naked man walking in the streets, Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said at the news conference Saturday afternoon.
The man barricaded himself in a nearby business when officers attempted to speak with him. Worley said the man then proceeded to throw an unidentified liquid at the officers after they made “numerous attempts to get the man to come out.”
After the police retreated and grabbed body bunkers, they made a second attempt to enter the building when the man charged at them with two knives.
In response, an officer discharged their weapon and shot the man.
“While he was being taken into custody, he was still reaching for a weapon, but officers were able to render aid to him [and] put a tourniquet on his leg, probably saved his life,” Worley said.
The injured officer was treated at Mercy Hospital, said Niki Fennoy, a Baltimore police spokesperson, in an email.
In response to the shooting, the department has issued its critical incident reporting policy and is still investigating the matter. The body camera footage of the officer involved will be released in the coming days.
Worley said he reviewed the footage and from what he’s seen commends the officers.
“Once you see the body-worn camera, you’ll see how intense and you’ll see how great of a job our officers did yet again, not only in trying to disarm the individual [but] once he was injured, rendering aid and possibly saving his life,” he said.
“While it’s still an open and active investigation, I want to commend the officer’s work every single day. Another example of great police work.”
Baltimore Sun reporter Annie Jennemann contributed to this article.