Police: Armed man shot after pointing pellet gun at officers

COLUMBIA, Md. – Police in Maryland say officers shot a man who threatened to kill his family and himself after he pointed a replica gun at officers.

Police identified the man Monday afternoon as James Andrew Schueler, 42, of Columbia.

Howard County police spokeswoman Sherry Llewellyn said by telephone that a 911 caller reported that Schueler was heading to Columbia to kill his family Monday and mentioned “suicide by cop.” Officers stopped the man’s Jeep Cherokee and Llewellyn says he told officers he had a gun and wanted to hurt himself.

Llewellyn says when he pointed the gun at officers, an officer shot him. He was flown to a Baltimore trauma centre.

In a news release Monday, police said the gun was a replica pellet gun “nearly identical to a semi-automatic pistol.”

Department of Fire and Rescue spokeswoman Maria Hogg says the man had serious injuries.

Llewellyn says the man is white, but she didn’t know the race of the officer, who is on routine administrative leave.