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On Sunday, November 6, a Baltimore activist, Tyree Moorehead, was fatally shot by an officer from the Baltimore Police Department. Moorehead was allegedly assaulting a woman with a knife, which prompted the shooting.
Bodycam footage of the deadly shooting was made public by the Baltimore Police Department on Tuesday, November 8. Authorities said the shooting took place in West Baltimore, where Tyree Moorehead was shot multiple times by the officer.
The Maryland Attorney General's Office's Independent Investigations Division identified the officer who pulled the trigger as Zachary Rutherford. In the video, Moorehead can be seen wielding a large butcher's knife. He was repeatedly asked to drop it before the officers fired shots at him. Moorehead remained on the ground and apparently stayed on top of the woman.
Trigger warning: The following video is graphic in nature. The viewer's discretion is advised.
Over a dozen gunshots can be heard in the bodycam videos of Rutherford and Officer-trainee Michael Hazel. The precise number of gunshot wounds sustained by the gun activist will be released by the medical examiner.
Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said:
"What we saw the officer witness was a large knife in his hand, struggling with this female, and we saw him get back on top of the female with the knife. This is based on the time that the threat is present."
Tyree Moorehead's father, Carlton Moorehead, who had previously lost two other sons, could not comprehend why the police had to shoot his son multiple times when he was already on the ground and complying with their orders. He said:
"The police should not have shot him so many times. I don’t want to put my mind on it. I have no sons left."
The police officers involved in the fatal shooting have been put on administrative leave.
Who was Tyree Moorehead? Family and loved ones claim that the reformed activist was dealing with mental health issues
Baltimore is littered with "no-shoot zones" all across its neighborhoods and blocks, and the city has gun-violence activist Tyree Moorehead to thank for that.
The former gang member spent years of his life creating "no-shoot zones" in areas where previous shootings had taken lives. More than 250 of Moorehead's anti-violent messages have been spray-painted across Baltimore.
Christina Flowers, a minister with the Real Care Providers Network, remembered Moorehead for creating "no-shoot zones" across the city, which was his way of giving back to the community. She said:
"Not only do I know him, he's a part of our network. He does a lot of grassroots initiatives in this city. He uplifts the city a lot. He worked with me with the homeless population a lot."
Tyree Moorehead was killed in a police shooting on Lafayette and Fulton avenues. He allegedly assaulted a woman at knifepoint.
In the past few months, Moorehead’s behavior has reportedly been erratic. His family and friends said that he faced mental health challenges. Angelia McDonald, Tyree Moorehead's longtime partner, said:
"He was talking and saying he wouldn’t want to live anymore. He wasn’t suicidal, but he didn’t want to live anymore."
Though she had considered calling an ambulance to take him to the hospital for mental health treatment, she believed that he would refuse to get the treatment he needed. People who knew Moorehead have said that he lived in constant paranoia of dying at the hands of the police.
