They called for help. The system called their deaths inevitable.

There were 143 deaths in Maryland police encounters from 2015 to 2023, many of them people calling for help, writes Sonia Kumar, but in the wake of a shooting no one's asking the important question: Not why it happened but could it have been prevented.

By: Sonia Kumar

Outlets: Maryland Matters

Published: August 13, 2026

Words: 914

Last Updated: 5 days, 15 hours ago

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In 2020, police were called to the Maryland home of Gamel Antonio Brown after he cut his hand on a broken mirror. His family told officers there had been no altercation. Mr. Brown showed police his bleeding hand. A responding officer even radioed that no backup was needed — just medics.

By the time medics arrived, however, police had physically struggled with Mr. Brown, tased him, and restrained him. Within the hour, he was dead. …

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