$1M Settlement Reached In Officer Shooting Of Suicidal Man: Official

HARFORD COUNTY, MD ?A claim against Harford County first responders filed by the family of a reportedly suicidal man shot and killed in 2022 has been settled for $1 million.

John Raymond Fauver, 53, of the 1400 block of Old Pylesville Road in Whiteford, was pronounced dead at an area trauma center April 23, 2022. Harford County sheriff's deputies fired at Fauver after officers were called around 2:45 p.m. that day for a report of a suicidal person believed to be in possession of a long gun, according to the Harford County Sheriff's Office. After searching for nearly an hour and talking to Fauver on the phone, investigators said they found him behind the CVS in the 1500 block of Rock Spring Road in Forest Hill.

In released videos that show the incident from multiple vantage points through dashboard cameras and body cameras, officers tried to talk Fauver into getting out of his truck and coming to them with his hands up. However, he appeared to hover near his truck's door and multiple times reached into his truck for something, the police department stated in 2022. After one deputy got out of his patrol car and ordered Fauver out of his truck at gunpoint, he started to drive away, prompting the officer to shoot multiple rounds at the tires, officials said.

At one point about 10 minutes into the exchange in the parking lot behind Chopstix restaurant, Fauver got out of his truck, then "retrieved an item from his truck and pointed it at deputies," at which point one sergeant and one corporal at the scene shot him. "A cane was recovered near Mr. Fauver's body," the attorney general reported. Earlier in the videos, officers said: "It's a cane" and were aware there was a cane in the car. One officer said there were guns in the vehicle as well, but said it was unclear where they were, according to the police department.

According to a statement released by county officials, Harford County?s insurer will pay $650,000 toward the settlement with the balance of $350,000 coming from county government coffers.

"The settlement in the death of John Raymond Fauver admits no wrongdoing by first responders. County government agreed to the settlement based on recommendations in the ... letter from its insurance company and the advice of outside legal counsel with extensive experience in such federal court cases," the statement said.

County officials noted in the statement that their counsel advised them the cost of litigation in the case could amount to almost three times the county's cost to settle the lawsuit.

In June 2022, the Harford County state's attorney ruled that the officers involved acted in a way that was "both necessary and proportional."

According to a letter (see below) from the legal representation of Jennifer Bridges, Fauver's wife and administrator of his estate, she called the police concerned about her husband's safety. The letter said she told dispatchers that her husband was "emotionally unwell because of the significant physical pain that he was experiencing." Officers found Fauver behind a store in a parking lot and approached his vehicle with their weapons drawn.

"The officers knew or should have known that Mr. Fauver was going through a crisis at that time. Another Harford County sheriff's deputy, who was several hundred feet away, discharged his weapon even though none of the other officers, who were at a much better vantage point, had done so. In response, the other officers on the scene discharged their firearms as well. Mr. Fauver was shot in the upper body and succumbed to his injuries later that day. He did not have a weapon at the time he was shot," the letter from Bridges' attorney stated.

Jefferson L. Blomquist, Harford County attorney, wrote in a letter (see below) that "the facts of the case are not favorable to HSO."

"The many difficulties associated with defending the case have been well documented, and the likelihood of a defense verdict is low. Our recent experience with law enforcement cases in the Fourth Circuit has not been favorable. The courts are reluctant to grant qualified immunity and the settlements and awards are much greater than only a few years ago. Our experience mirrors that of your defense attorney, who has identified several similar cases that resulted in awards three to five times larger than the current demand on our case," Blomquist wrote.

Related:

• Forest Hill Shooting Was 'Suicide By Law Enforcement': Prosecutor
• Man Killed By Deputies Identified: Harford County Sheriff
• 'Shameful': Harford County Sheriff On Attorney General's Lawsuit
• Harford Deputy-Involved Death: State Delays Release Of Camera Footage
• Attorney General Sues Harford Sheriff Over Deputy Shooting Probe
• Harford County Judge Orders Sheriff To Surrender Evidence: Report
• Video From Deadly Forest Hill Deputy Shooting Released
• Man Killed In Forest Hill Encounter With Deputies
• 2 Officers Identified In Forest Hill Shooting: Harford County Sheriff