Slain Baltimore Officer Was Shot With Own Gun

He was due to testify in corruption case the next day
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 23, 2017 2:15 AM CST
Slain Detective Was Due to Testify in Corruption Case
Members of the Baltimore Police Department gather near the scene of the shooting death of Baltimore Police Det. Sean Suiter in Baltimore, Friday, Nov. 17, 2017.   (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

A new twist in the Sean Suiter case: The Baltimore homicide detective killed while investigating a triple murder last week was due to testify in a corruption case involving fellow officers the very next day, authorities say. Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis says Suiter was due to testify before a federal grand jury regarding members of the city's Gun Trace Task Force who are accused of conspiring with drug dealers, the Baltimore Sun. Four officers have pleaded guilty to racketeering and another four are due to go on trial in January. It's not clear whether Suiter's testimony about an incident years ago would have helped or harmed the officers, the Sun notes, though Davis stresses that Suiter himself was not accused of wrongdoing and federal authorities say he was not being investigated.

Davis told reporters Wednesday that there are no signs Suiter, a 43-year-old father of five, was "anything other than a stellar detective, great friend, loving husband, and dedicated father." He says federal authorities have told him they have no reason to believe the Nov. 15 shooting was connected to the corruption case and investigators have found no sign of a conspiracy. The commissioner said Suiter was shot in the head at close range with his own gun after what appears to have been a brief but violent struggle, the Washington Post reports. Suiter, who had confronted a man he saw acting suspiciously, made a call, "clearly in distress," and died clutching his radio. Suiter's partner sought cover across the street and called 911. No arrests have been made and no suspects have been identified. (More Baltimore stories.)

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