HOWARD COUNTY, Md. - A Maryland family is suing Howard County, the police force and three officers for wrongful death, claiming they violated federal disability laws. The family of Alexander LaMorie alleges that police knew LaMorie had autism and that he was suicidal, but failed to follow department and county policy related to mental health crises.
The shooting
The backstory:
The shooting happened overnight between Feb. 28 and March 1. LaMorie called 911 shortly before midnight, saying that he was suicidal after he'd allegedly fallen victim to a "cyber sextortion" scam.
When officers first got to LaMorie's apartment at the Patuxent Commons, they could not find him. Instead, LaMorie encountered officers outside in the courtyard of the building, where he allegedly was waiting for police after calling 911.
In body camera footage released shortly after the shooting, LaMorie is seen holding a knife, which attorneys described as a butter knife, and can be heard telling officers that he "[didn't] want to live anymore."
One of the officers is heard telling LaMorie to calm down, saying, "We can fix this."
Then, LaMorie walks slowly toward the officers before they fire 12 shots, hitting LaMorie 11 times, according to the lawsuit.
‘Failure’ of mental health resources
Dig deeper:
The lawsuit argues that Howard County and its police did not follow their own policies or utilize proper mental health resources, such as mobile crisis teams, as required under federal disability law. According to the complaint, officers were trained to recognize and appropriately respond to residents with mental health disabilities, especially at Patuxent Commons where LaMorie lived—a community partially developed to serve people with autism and other disabilities.
The complaint said that officers responded to LaMorie's call for help with "no plan, no coordination and no less-lethal options." None of the responding officers had Tasers.
"Instead, they relied on a force-first response, failed to involve mental health specialists, failed to de-escalate the situation and had no tasers despite recognizing before the shooting that such less-lethal options were appropriate," the complaint reads.
What they're saying:
Jill Harrington, LaMorie's mother, is the plaintiff in the federal lawsuit. In a press release Thursday, she said that with the use of proper mental health resources, her son's death could have been avoided.
"Alex’s preventable and senseless fatal shooting has impacted every part of our lives—leaving
indelible, enduring trauma and grief," Harrington said. "In Alex’s memory, this lawsuit is both a quest for accountability and a way to effect meaningful change."
County, police respond
The other side:
In response to a request for comment, a spokesperson from the Howard County Government said they had not yet been served the complaint, but that "Howard County Government also does not comment on pending or impending litigation."
The Howard County Police Department similarly told FOX 5 that "the department is unable to comment on pending litigation."
The Source: Information in this story is from Brown, Goldstein & Levy, announcing Jill Harrington's wrongful death lawsuit against Howard County, the Howard County Police Department and three HCPD officers; a copy of the complaint filed on Oct. 29, 2026; body camera footage of the shooting released by the Maryland Office of the Attorney General on March 30, 2026; and previous FOX 5 DC reporting.