In the early hours of a Friday morning in Suitland, Maryland, a heated argument between two brothers set in motion a chain of events that would end in tragedy. On May 30, 2014, 20-year-old Mark Anthony Blocker was involved in a dispute with his brother outside their apartment complex on Curtis Drive. The argument escalated to the point that a neighbor, alarmed by the sight of what appeared to be a military-style weapon in Blocker's hands, called 911.
Responding to the report of a person armed with a long gun at approximately 2:15 a.m., Prince George's County police officers arrived at a tense scene. They found two men arguing and one, later identified as Mark Anthony Blocker, was holding what looked like an assault rifle. Police ordered Blocker to drop the weapon, an order he reportedly did not obey.
In what authorities later described as a split-second decision made in fear for their lives, two officers fired their weapons, striking Blocker. It was only after the shooting that the long gun and a handgun found at the scene were discovered to be pellet guns. Blocker's brother was not injured in the incident and faced no charges. The two officers who fired their weapons, one a 13-year veteran and the other with five years on the force, were placed on routine paid administrative leave pending an investigation into the fatal shooting.
