Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan Bates announced indictments against five law enforcement officers on Tuesday morning for charges ranging from assault, excessive force, misconduct, theft and reckless endangerment.
The five officers were indicted in three separate incidents and involved officers from Baltimore County and City police departments.
A Baltimore City Grand Jury indicted Colonel Zachary Small on Second-Degree Assault, Reckless Endangerment, Excessive Force and Misconduct in Office. Baltimore County Officers Jacob Roos and Justin Graham-Moore were indicted on Misconduct in Office for actions on the same incident. Bates said those officers were able to be indicted under a fairly new Maryland statute that went into law in 2022. Under Maryland law, officers are “to intervene to prevent or terminate the use of force by another police officer.”
Bates said it is the first time his office has charged sworn officers under the new law although he could not say for certain if he was the first in the state to do so.
On September 27th, just after 7 p.m., officers were responding to a suspect who had escaped police custody at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Colonel Zachary Small of the Baltimore County Police Department was one of approximately nine Baltimore County Police Officers, seven Baltimore City Police officers and two Johns Hopkins Security Officers who responded, according to the indictment.
Small and the responding officers cuffed the suspect’s hand behind his back and shackled his legs. They put him into the back of a marked patrol vehicle, one with a partition in front of the back seat, and then the indictment notes that Small put a seatbelt on the suspect. The windows in the patrol car were rolled up.
Moments later the victim began to bang his head on the back window and stated, “I can’t breathe here, yo.” Cpl. Small opened the back door and the suspect continued to repeat, “I can’t breathe here, yo.” At that point, according to court documents, Cpl Small responded, “You break that f—ing window you’re gonna get the whole can of pepper spray!” The in-custody man continued to plead and express his inability to breathe, noting that the air conditioning in the car was not turned on. The man pleaded with Small, and according to the indictment asked, “Please don’t kill me like this.”
While the victim was still restrained, according to the indictment, Small sprayed nine shots of O/C pepper spray into the man’s face. Small then dragged the victim out of the vehicle, threw him on the ground, and began to yank the man around by the hair. While the man continued to say he could not breathe, Small said, “You asked for it. Just remember. I warned you.”
According to documents, the victim was then put back into the patrol car, despite his pleas not to go back into the car where pepper spray was deployed. “It’s so hot in here, y’all don’t, y’all don’t do this to y’all dogs, yo. Why are you doing this to me?” he allegedly asked.
Small, nor the other officers on the scene, attempted to render aid to the victim for his injuries nor did they take him to a medical facility for treatment.
Roos and Graham-Moore were ultimately charged with misconduct for that same incident.
“We looked at every single officer's body camera to figure out what they could see and what they couldn't see,” said Bates, explaining how his office worked to prove culpability in that incident. After looking at that footage, the SAO’s officer had to determine which officers could be proved culpable “beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Bates noted multiple times that an indictment is not an indication of guilt.
"The Baltimore County Police Department launched an investigation after discovering an incident in Baltimore City that involved a use of force. Since the incident took place in a neighboring jurisdiction, the Department followed standard operating procedures and informed local authorities. The Baltimore County Police Department takes pride in its commitment to transparency and meeting the expectations of the community," wrote a spokesperson for the county's police department.
“I expect members of the Baltimore County Police Department to treat all people with the utmost dignity and respect,” said Chief Robert McCullough in the statement.
The two other indicted officers were Baltimore City officers involved in two separate incidents.
According to her indictment, Officer Alexia Davis was charged after a June 23, 2023 traffic collision while she was driving her patrol car. Davis crashed into a motorcyclist, who as a result of the cyclist’s injuries, had to have a leg amputated, said Bates.
Davis has five charges stemming from that collision on 4900 Sinclair Lane: misconduct in office, reckless driving, negligent driving, failure to control speed to avoid a collision and driving an emergency vehicle without regard for the safety of others.
Detective June Hall, also of the Baltimore City Police Department, is charged in a third and separate case with theft, operating a theft scheme, making false entries in public records and misconduct in office, according to Hall’s indictment.
“Creating a safer Maryland becomes all the more challenging when officers sworn to uphold the law commit criminal acts themselves. My administration will remain steadfast in its commitment to apply the law equally regardless of the offender, with the ultimate goal of achieving justice for victims and holding individuals accountable,” said Bates.
This story may be updated.
