Crime & Safety
No Charges Against Police in Death of Jeffrey Nichols
Police shot the 19-year-old Elkridge man eight times on Nov. 7 for refusing to drop his weapon on Hi Tech Drive.
No criminal charges will be filed against Howard County police in the shooting of a after a standoff on Hi Tech Drive last month, the state attorney's office for Howard County announced Tuesday. The victim was found to be carrying a pellet gun.
Jeffrey Nichols, 19, of Grouse Road, died on Nov. 14, a week after he was later found to be a pellet gun, according to the police department, which responded to a call on Loudon Avenue for reports of shots fired on Nov. 7.
According to police, Nichols walked along the railroad tracks to Hi Tech Drive with a gun that appeared to be a semiautomatic handgun and did not comply with requests to drop his weapon.
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“We have reviewed the investigative reports…and conducted our own investigation and have concluded (that) the actions of the officers in using deadly force were justified,” wrote State’s Attorney Dario J. Broccolino in a memo to Howard County Police Chief William J. McMahon on Dec. 9 that was released today.
“No further action will be taken by this office,” said Broccolino.
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