Baltimore County police said the wounded officer was conscious after gunfire broke out near Milford Mill Road.
PIKESVILLE, MD — A Baltimore County police officer, an armed suspect and a bystander were shot Sunday morning after officers responded to a call near a trail off Milford Mill Road, county police and local officials said.
The shooting drew a large police response to the Pikesville area and sent the injured officer to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center. Police said the officer was conscious and being treated after the shooting. The suspect was also hospitalized and in custody, while the bystander was listed as stable. Officials said the incident appeared isolated, but major questions remained about who fired the shots that struck each person.
Police said officers were called around 8:50 a.m. to the area of Milford Mill Road and Scotts Level Road for a report of a suspicious person. Local reports said the call involved a person exposing himself along a trail near the 900 block of Milford Mill Road. When officers arrived and approached the person, police said the person opened fire. Officers returned fire and struck the suspect. Baltimore County Police Chief Robert McCullough said the case showed the danger officers can face on routine calls. “It’s unpredictable,” McCullough said, adding that the shooting showed the risks faced by law enforcement officers each day.
The officer’s name was not immediately released. Police said the officer had been with the department for about a year and a half. The officer was taken to Shock Trauma in critical but stable condition, according to local reports. Baltimore County Executive Kathy Klausmeier said the officer was awake and talking after the shooting. She said she had been told the officer was “having a couple of jokes here and there,” and wished him well. Officials did not immediately release the suspect’s name, age or hometown. Police also had not said how many officers fired their weapons or whether the bystander was struck by police gunfire or by the suspect’s gunfire.
The shooting happened in a public area near a park and trail used by residents in the Pikesville precinct. McCullough said officers had been responding to a suspicious person in a public place when the encounter turned violent. “We do know that we had an armed subject who is in a public area, a public park, who is suspicious,” McCullough said. He said officers approached the person before shots were fired toward them. Councilman Izzy Patoka, who represents the area, said he lives about a half mile from the scene and uses the park. He called the shooting “100% senseless” and said the community would support the wounded officer and the police department.
Homicide detectives and internal affairs investigators are handling the case, McCullough said. That review is expected to examine the original call, the officers’ arrival, the exchange of gunfire and the injuries to the officer, suspect and bystander. Police had not announced charges by Sunday night. The suspect remained under guard while recovering at a hospital, according to local reports. Maryland has a state process for reviewing some police-involved incidents, including fatal shootings, but this case was not reported as fatal as of the latest public updates. Authorities also had not announced when body-worn camera footage, radio calls or a fuller timeline might be released.
State and local officials issued statements after the shooting. Gov. Wes Moore said he and first lady Dawn Moore were praying for the officer’s recovery and condemned violence against law enforcement officers. U.S. Rep. Johnny Olszewski, a former Baltimore County executive, said the shooting was a reminder of the dangers officers face while serving their communities. Klausmeier called the incident “an awful, awful thing” and said such violence was unacceptable. Patoka said the attack hit close to home because of his ties to the neighborhood. The scene remained marked by police activity for hours as investigators worked near the trail and road.
By Sunday night, police said the officer, suspect and bystander were all expected to survive. The next major step is the release of more details from Baltimore County police, including the suspect’s identity, any charges and how the bystander was shot.
Author note: Last updated June 8, 2026.