16-Year-Old With Airsoft Gun, Knife Fatally Shot By State Trooper, Maryland State Police Say
LEONARDTOWN, Md. (WJZ) -- A 16-year-old with an airsoft gun and knife was killed in a trooper-involved shooting Tuesday afternoon in Leonardtown, according to Maryland State Police.
The suspect has been identified as Peyton Ham, 16, of Leonardtown. He was taken from the scene to MedStar St. Mary's Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
According to the preliminary investigation, Maryland State Police received two separate 911 calls around 1:30 p.m. at the Leonardtown Barrack.
The first call was from a male who gave a phone number instead of an address.
They reported to the dispatcher that there was someone acting suspiciously who he believed had a gun. The dispatcher asked for his location, but the call was disconnected.
Two minutes later, a second 911 call was received from a male who gave a street address in the 23000 block of Hollywood Road.
The caller said someone was acting suspicious and he thought he had a gun. He hung up and did not give a name.
The preliminary investigation indicates that within minutes, a uniformed Maryland state trooper arrived at the location and confronted Ham in the driveway.
Police said Ham was armed with a gun and knife.
A witness told investigators they saw the individual in the driveway in what the witness described as a shooting stance, pointing a gun at the trooper. The trooper fired at Ham, wounding him.
A second witness told investigators that after the trooper fired the first time, they saw Ham pull out a knife and try to get up. The trooper ordered him to drop the knife before he fired again.
Investigators later determined the gun to be an airsoft gun that was a "close representation of an actual gun."
The trooper reported the shooting and called for EMS. Aid was rendered to Ham by troopers and sheriff's deputies until EMS arrived.
The trooper involved is a uniformed patrol trooper assigned to the Leonardtown Barrack. He has been a Maryland state trooper for two years and seven months.
