Knife-wielding man fatally shot by police was Baltimore activist who created ‘no-shoot zones’

By Jenyne Donaldson

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    BALTIMORE, Maryland (WBAL) — A Baltimore police officer fatally shot a man who was known for his work in the community creating “no-shoot zones.”

A shooting Sunday afternoon in west Baltimore killed the activist known for creating 256 “no-shoot zones” across the city. People who worked with him in the community said they have more questions than answers.

Baltimore police said an officer responding to an assault call at Lafayette and Fulton avenues found Tyree Moorehead holding a woman at knifepoint.

Drexel Green-Brown, who lives nearby, said she dropped to the floor when she heard the shots.

“I heard a bunch of commotion. It sounded like somebody was fussing and arguing about something, and then the next thing I heard was a whole bunch of shots — at least 10 or more. It was a lot,” Green-Brown said.

She doesn’t know Moorehead but said her daughter pointed him out to her and claimed he’d recently been bothering her.

“My daughter, she didn’t know him personally. She just said this guy just kept harassing her and she didn’t know who he was or why he was bothering her,” Green-Brown said.

Friends of Moorehead brought balloons and teddy bears to the street corner to honor him. Huli Challone, shared his favorite memory of Moorehead, saying Moorehead put his music career on hold to focus on the community.

“I put him on my set to perform, and I thought he wasn’t going to show up, and I was like cussing him out. And then, he came (in) the last five minutes and killed the whole show. I mean, his performance was, like, incredible. He was the man,” Challone said.

Christina Flowers, a minister with the Real Care Providers Network, said Moorehead was known for the “no-shoot zones” he created across the city and said it was his way of giving back.

“Not only do I know him, he’s a part of our network. He does a lot of grassroots initiatives in this city. He uplifts the city a lot. He worked with me with the homeless population a lot,” Flowers said. “He never gave me any reason to see him in a capacity of being physical with someone. He has a wife, he has children. So, again, I would need to hear the outcome of things to understand what was going on yesterday.”

Flowers said she watched numerous videos of the shooting from at least three different angles. She said at no time was Moorehead uncooperative.

“When the officer say (stet), ‘Get down,’ he went down. Now, (there) t was a car right here, so I just don’t know. What did he get down and do? But if he went back down on top of her, would you still shoot 13 times with an innocent person there being harassed?” Flowers said.

Flowers said many officers knew Moorehead and his work, and she questioned whether the officer who shot him had good intentions.

“This officer, the mayor said, he was a quick thinker. Was he more impulsive? Was he more radical? Was he frustrated? Was he agitated about something that he just jumped out and started shooting 13 times? And, what stopped him from shooting the young lady if he was on top of the young lady?” Flowers said.

The shooting remains under investigation. Police said the woman who Moorehead held at knifepoint did not suffer serious injuries.

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