Police officers deserve our respect and our admiration because every day, they literally put their lives at risk enforcing our laws and keeping the rest of us safe. That being said, from time to time individual officers may act wrongly.

Although we do not know all the facts yet, there are certainly questions regarding the recent killing of a car theft suspect by law enforcement officers, including an officer from Anne Arundel County. Although there seems to be evidence that the man who was killed did indeed commit some sort of crime, the circumstances as we understand them do not indicate it was the sort of crime worth killing someone over.

The sad story begins last Tuesday when police came to believe that a car had been stolen from Baltimore County. Around 2 a.m., a car matching the description of the stolen vehicle was spotted near Wilkens. On two separate occasions, two different officers tried to pull the vehicle over, but the driver would not stop either time.

The car was eventually found after it had crashed near Baltimore City, close to the county border line. Police said it was there that the suspect and a police officer fought and the suspect stole the officer's squad car.

The squad car was then spotted at a motel, but the suspect fled the motel in another vehicle. Three Baltimore County officers and an Anne Arundel County officer were able to stop the vehicle. As the suspect emerged, they shot him to death.

All three officers have been placed on administrative leave per standard operating procedure. The man's death is still under investigation. If anything interesting is learned, we will use this blog to keep you informed.

Source: The Baltimore Sun, "Man shot and killed by police Tuesday morning," Jon Meoli, Jan. 31, 2012