A Baltimore man charged with killing a correctional officer told police he just meant to “slap” at the murder weapon during a robbery when the gun accidentally went off.
In an unusual confession to city police, Brandon Wall, 21, said he and an accomplice meant only to rob veteran prison guard Lt. Perry Brooks, 48, on May 25, but his murder was inadvertent.
Police charged Wall, 21, of the 2000 block of Hillenwood Road, Wednesday with first-degree murder, after locking him up on an unrelated warrant.
The Warrant Apprehension Task Force arrested Wall on Tuesday for a nonfatal shooting that occurred several days before Brooks? murder.
“This particular nonfatal shooting was near the vicinity of where Mr. Brooks was shot and killed and identical ballistic evidence was found on the scene,” wrote homicide Det. Mark Veney in a police report.
After the arrest, Veney and fellow homicide detective Joon Kim began interviewing Wall, who waived his Miranda rights, according to charging documents.
“During the course of the interview, the defendant confessed to murdering Mr. Brooks,” Veney wrote.
Wall told police that he and an accomplice named Justin Russell saw Brooks parked in his driveway and approached the vehicle from the driver?s side.
Russell pointed a handgun at Brooks and announced a robbery, causing Brooks to grab the handgun and struggle with Russell, Wall said.
Wall told police he tried to “slap the gun free” from Brooks? grasp, during which time the gun discharged killing Brooks.
Brooks was found on the 1900 block of Hillenwood Road by his 12-year-old grandson dead from a “defensive” gun shot wound.
Brooks most recently worked as a supervisor at the Baltimore Central Booking and Intake Center. He began his career in the Pre-Release System of the Maryland Division of Correction in 1984. He worked at Brock Bridge Correctional Facility in Jessup and Central Laundry Facility in Sykesville.
