A Landover, Maryland man accused of shooting a police officer has been slapped with federal firearms charges. Victor Scott Terrill, 40, faced a judge in U.S. District Court after he reportedly fired at a District Housing Authority Police officer on February 29, in a Southeast apartment building in Washington's Navy Yard neighborhood. Court documents reveal the officer was seriously wounded and continues to recover from the injuries sustained during what started as a disturbance call.
According to a report by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the trouble began in the wee hours when two DCHA officers were responding to a disturbance at an apartment complex. Terrill allegedly brandished a handgun and shot an officer in the abdomen. He then fled the area, with the officers in pursuit, splitting up during the chase. The uninjured officer witnessed two flashes of muzzle fire and heard shots as they appeared to exchange gunfire with Terrill.
The immediate aftermath had additional officers and citizens on the lookout, with tips leading to Terrill being spotted entering a building at 1331 4th Street, SE. The building was quickly barricaded by law enforcement, and surveillance video later caught Terrill ditching a handgun in a trashcan and yanking a fire alarm. The suspect was eventually nabbed without further incident by an Emergency Response Team, and a Smith & Wesson 40 Caliber handgun was recovered from a the trashcan.
In light of these events, yesterday, prosecutors stood before Magistrate Judge Robin M. Meriweather arguing for Terrill's detention pending his trial. With a hearing set for March 8, the court will decide whether Terrill should be released or kept in detention. The investigation is a joint effort between the FBI's Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), with Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith Mayer-Dempsey of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia taking the lead on prosecution.
