Killing of Korryn Gaines

Killing of Korryn Gaines
DateAugust 1, 2016 (2016-08-01)
Time3:00 p.m.
LocationCarriage Hill Circle, Randallstown, Maryland, U.S.
CauseShot by police
Filmed byKorryn Gaines (filmed portions of the standoff)
ParticipantsKorryn Gaines, Kodi Gaines, Baltimore County Police Department members
DeathsKorryn Gaines (age 23)
Non-fatal injuriesKodi (Gaines' son, age 5)
Publication bansUpon police request, Facebook deactivated Gaines' social media accounts (Facebook and Instagram) featuring live coverage of the standoff

The killing of Korryn Gaines occurred on August 1, 2016, in Randallstown, Maryland, near Baltimore,[1] resulting in the death of Gaines, a 23-year-old woman, and the shooting of her son, who survived. According to the Baltimore County Police Department, officers sought to serve Gaines a warrant in relation to an earlier traffic violation. She had refused to vacate her vehicle or show her driver's license, and resisted arrest. Immediately after the first officer entered her home to serve the warrant, Gaines pointed a shotgun at him, prompting him to withdraw without shots being fired. The Baltimore County SWAT team responded and a standoff began. She recorded and live streamed to Facebook where Gaines's friends told her to "continue on". She is seen to have told her son that "the police are coming to kill us". Upon her refusal to let them in, police got a key from the rental office but found the chain lock blocked their entry. An officer then kicked in the door. Police say Gaines pointed a shotgun at an officer, telling him to leave.[2]

Upon police request, Facebook deactivated Gaines' Facebook and Instagram accounts,[3] leading to criticism of the company's involvement in the incident.[4] In 2018, a jury awarded the Gaines family $38 million in damages after finding that the first shot, fired by Royce Ruby and killing Gaines, was not reasonable, and thus violated their civil rights.[5] That verdict was overturned in February 2019 by Judge Mickey Norman, who ruled that physical evidence suggests Gaines' was raising her weapon when shot, thus posing a threat to Ruby and his team. Judge Norman, himself a former law enforcement officer, described Ruby's actions as 'objectively reasonable' and ruled all officers involved had Qualified Immunity.[6]

In July 2020, an appeal court reinstated the $38 million award with the explanation that it is the responsibility for the jury to decide questions of fact, not for the court to do so, concluding the judge had abused his discretion in that regard.[7]

  1. ^ Lartey, Jamiles (2 August 2016). "Black woman shot dead by police during standoff while holding son". The Guardian.
  2. ^ "Korryn Gaines: The 6-hour police standoff". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on 29 January 2022. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference timesfb was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference intercept was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference verdict was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Judge overturns $38M verdict in lawsuit over Baltimore County police killing of Korryn Gaines". Archived from the original on 2019-04-09. Retrieved 2019-04-09.
  7. ^ Graeff, J. "Cunningham, et al. v. Baltimore County, et al., No. 3461, September Term, 2018, Opinion by Graeff, J. COLLATERAL ESTOPPEL - FINAL JUDGMENT - SUPPRESSION RULING". documentcloud.org. Retrieved 2024-03-09.