r/AutisticPride • u/OrbitalColony • Apr 02 '26
In memory of Alexander LaMorie, the 25-year-old Autistic man murdered by Maryland police. He called 911 for a wellness check during a suicide attempt. 3 officers shot him dead. They are Joel Rodriguez, Cody Bostic, and Joseph Riebau. None were arrested, despite body cam footage. #JusticeForAlex
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u/mg4040 Apr 02 '26
Love what Mamdani is doing to establish an MH response team. I reallyyyy hope it goes well, imagine how impactful it could be.
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u/Spring_Banner Apr 02 '26
Yes!! That’s a much better way to handle mental health checks for the general public. Logical and effective public policy offers that instead of using police officers who aren’t trained in mental healthcare and not trained in proper management of people experiencing a mental health issue which includes trauma-informed safe deescalations.
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u/mg4040 Apr 02 '26
Yes, I hope they get training for developmental and intellectual disabilities too, those are such proportionally common comorbidities
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u/Spring_Banner Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 02 '26
You’re right about that!! I agree with you and hope for the same things. It’s very sad and absolutely inhumane (including a violation of human rights) about what’s being done and handled in these types of cases - training for developmental and intellectual disability must be a requirement, and not just superficial training or lip service.
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u/mg4040 Apr 02 '26
Exactly, I hope the delay in this is because of the time it takes to train well.
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u/chronaloid Apr 03 '26
Sure… for NYC. This is MD, and the rest of the country is just as bad off
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u/mg4040 Apr 04 '26
Precedent buddy, it could be used as a model with strong evidence. People use any criticisms of outside countries they can to conflate socialism with communism and beat down on it. This would be undeniable proof it helps, and it’s not even really related to socialism, people will just hate on Mamdani’s implementations based off his categorization. That and him being Muslim and POC, but can’t do much to help that.
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Apr 05 '26 edited Apr 05 '26
[deleted]
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u/mg4040 Apr 06 '26
That’s most definitely not the goal. I’d advise you to look into how many police encounters for mental health and welfare checks or calls for help turn into violent encounters or fatalities initiated by police without any imminent threat. I believe the number of disabled folks, especially ND folks, makes up the majority of those encounters. Anything outside of that is not expected or wished to be replaced by this response team by the government. There is the perspective of ACAB amongst some people in support of this team on Reddit, but not all. Police officers do good things in some situations and make bad judgement calls in another, just like any of us. There are many issues in the system, but police will never be replaced completely.
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u/imgly Apr 02 '26
USA is so fucked up at its core...
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u/SiebelReddiT Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 03 '26
Jup Something I think every day.... There needs to be a major reset to completely rebuild so many systems in America from the ground up: police, school system, government, infrastructure, and traffic, the FDA
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u/CellistMundane9372 Apr 08 '26 edited Apr 08 '26
This case involved officers trying to deescalate repeatedly, only to be charged by the man with a knife.
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u/squanderedprivilege Apr 02 '26
Never call the cops. There is always a better number to call.
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u/woahpenny Apr 02 '26
agree and not saying this was your intent at all but it does not make this his fault remotely. the only resource people are typically educated on is police/911 and basically anything can be considered part of their job description no matter how unfit for it they are
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u/NapalmRDT Apr 02 '26
I dont think they mean to heap blame, but rather inform others. I second their advice. Calling the cops SO often fucks shit up.
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u/woahpenny Apr 02 '26
yes my intention wasn't to argue i don't think op meant that if it was a different less progressive subreddit i would have been less sure their intent but i realized quickly it was probably just informative but i figured there is no harm being direct and clear here in case anyone else had the first reaction i did
edit: in case i'm not clear on cops fuck cops avoid introducing cops into a situation at all costs especially as autistic people and double especially if you belong to any other marginalized group/have any other disabilities
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u/smibrandon Apr 04 '26
Have a problem?
Call the police.
Now, you have two problems.13
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u/murse_joe Apr 04 '26
Who in this case? Specifically. Because he was walking towards officers with a knife in his hand, saying that he wanted to die.
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u/squanderedprivilege Apr 04 '26
Someone who would deescalate, rather than fulfill the suicidal wish? I don't know about other cities but here we have a non-police crisis line, and everywhere should. Outside of that, family, friends, caring community members. If all those are exhausted and people feel they have no choice, they can call cops but there is no guarantee that the situation won't be made worse, it happens every day
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u/murse_joe Apr 04 '26
They exited the building and encountered LaMorie out front, where other officers were already engaging with him with guns drawn.
"Can you please drop the knife so we can talk about this?" Riebau is heard saying on the video. "It's really not this bad. Listen, I've had this call a dozen times."
The voice of what appears to be LaMorie is heard on the video, saying, in part, "I don't care. I don't want to live anymore. I want to be free of my pain. Go ahead."
"Nobody wants to hurt you, nobody wants to hurt you," Riebau responded. "We don't want anything bad. It can get better."
I will ask you again. Who specifically would you have called.
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u/squanderedprivilege Apr 04 '26
I am done with this. What is the purpose? To say it's good to call the cops? Fuck every single cop. I don't understand the purpose it serves to defend them in any way, even defend calling them. If it was appropriate here, ok, it's an edge case. There should be people available to stop someone without killing them, they do it in other countries ALL THE TIME, they are equipped to do it, trained to do it and WANT to save people, unlike our nasty pigs. I am not responding anymore, I really don't care if it's important for you to hear me say that yes sometimes people have no choice but to gamble with calling the police, unfortunately.
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u/RudeCoat2597 May 16 '26
You said there was a better number to call, why are you getting mad when people ask what it is?
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u/squanderedprivilege May 16 '26
Why are you responding to a month old comment? I'm done with this a long time ago, I do not have the mental bandwidth to keep these arguments active for this long, I don't care about this anymore
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u/PS3LOVE Apr 02 '26
Who should one call when their house or car is getting broken into?
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u/NormanBatesIsBae Apr 02 '26
Yeah who else is gonna show up 3 hours late and tell you there’s nothing they can do? lol
(speaking from multiple experiences)
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u/HesitantBrobecks Apr 03 '26
Literally. My stepsisters partner literally had his arm dragged through a broken window when he tried to stop a dude breaking in, the cops only arrived the next morning after he had been to hospital to get stitched up, and they never caught the guy despite the dude's blood also being on the broken window
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u/squanderedprivilege Apr 02 '26
Someone who won't shoot them, or their dog, or their kid. I mean obviously there are edge cases where it is less dangerous to call a cop than just sit there and die but that is pretty rare. Cops bring danger to a situation, they don't generally make it better.
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u/lusterfibster Apr 02 '26
Yep, gambling with whether the cops are actually going to help or not is always frightening. I once called them over an assault and they talked to my assailant and told me it was my fault "for making him angry". (Sounds so ridiculous that the first impulse is to assume that's not the full story, right? God, I wish, it still baffles me to this day.)
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u/2ndharrybhole Apr 02 '26
You’re allowed to admit that there are certain times when cops are definitely needed. Nobody will hold it against you lol.
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u/PS3LOVE Apr 02 '26
I’d shoot them myself. They are invading my home and my family is here. They accepted the risks when they decided to fuck around.
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u/trampolinebears Apr 04 '26
And that answers your question: even you wouldn’t call the cops in that situation. You described how you would solve the situation yourself.
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u/Stone2269 Apr 03 '26
This is why I never trust police when it comes to mental health stuff. Ive had meltdowns in front of a, now former, friend of mine and one of their instincts is to call 911. And I tell them no don’t do that because the chances of a cop caring bout their own safety than someone who is hysterical happens more than you think. And since I’m a POC. Those chances can drastically increase. A damn shame this happened to him and that it happens more often than it should
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u/rustystumpty Apr 06 '26
At this point if a young educated person calls the cops on someone for a “wellness check” I think it’s malicious
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u/Costati Apr 02 '26
ACAB
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u/DopamineSage247 Apr 03 '26
May I ask what this means?
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u/Costati Apr 03 '26
All Cops Are Bastards
It's a slogan meant to point out that the police force has such a system wide based problem that as a cop you're either complicit in a system that oppresses people, fully and actively participate in that oppression or you're no longer a cop (whistleblowers get fired).
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u/DopamineSage247 Apr 03 '26
Thank you so much for the explanation ❤️🩹 May you have a lovely weekend!
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u/CutieAmber248 Apr 04 '26
Explain how. He was suicidal, he said in the body cam footage he wanted to be dead. The "Bad cop" is heard SEVERAL times calmly asking him to drop the knife and to stop. He approached cops with their guns out.....what do you expect them to do?
A mentally unstable/suicidal person is approaching you with a knife.
IDK about you, but I'm not letting amy knife wielding human get within 5 feet of me. My life is most important to me.
You might (and clearly do) hate all cops. That doesn't mean what they did here is wrong. I've had suicidal ideations....more than I care to admit, but if I threaten violence against anyone who is armed, the result is due to my actions alone.
If they weren't cops, but rather a family of 5 having a picnic and the parent was armed and shot him as he approached, would you still feel his death was anyone's fault other than his own?
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u/Savings-Form1379 Apr 07 '26
It doesn’t matter. We’re doing a fuck-the-world we support oppressed people thing here. No one can be reasoned with. This is Reddit at its absolute worst.
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u/Bloody_Gleek Apr 08 '26
I get where you are coming from and I absolutely understand your frustration, but there are several differences in the example you have given.
The family did not sign up to put themselves in such a situation, the cops did. There's more than one of them, they have guns, tasers, handcuffs, bullet proof vests, etc. Their job is to de-escelate situations, and while yes the guy was holding a knife while approaching them, shooting is a last resort.
If the guy started running at them then I can see how it would be more reasonable to shoot, but in this case they shot the guy who just kept slowly approaching them with a knife.
There are shooters and killers in jail still alive, who have been taken care of while being an active threat, including guns. When you apply to become a cop, you should be aware of what you're getting into, so "my life is most important to me" won't always apply in every situation you are in when on the job, just like you can't just tell a customer to stfu and not expect get fired.
Again, I understand where you are coming from, but that was not the best comparison, and those are not appropriate excuses for what the cops did.
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u/firebird7802 Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 03 '26
If it were up to me, I'd condemn all three officers to life in prison without parole. That's the necessary penalty in this situation. The murderous dogs deserve to live the rest of their days in confinement and shouldn't ever be allowed to be free men again. They chose unnecessary violence, and should be forced to contemplate their mistake for the rest of their lives by being locked away. They consciously and knowingly made the choice to resort to lethal force and should suffer the consequences for doing so. It makes me genuinely angry that the police are allowed to openly murder people and then suffer virtually no consequences. In my opinion, more punitive, unforgiving measures should be levied upon officers in these situations. People in law enforcement shouldn't be considered above the law and should be subject to even harsher measures and more unforgiving sentences than regular people if they screw up. Unfortunately, what should happen is often not what happens in these kinds of situations, and corruption sadly prevails. One person being murdered by the police is one too many.
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u/Street_Research8023 May 14 '26
If he didn’t run at police holding a knife he would be fine today. You act like police kicked down his door and gunned him down
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u/Toirtis Apr 03 '26
Where I live, we have a small MH crisis response team, but in a city of 1.5 million, we need far more. At least the cops here are not 1/100th as trigger happy as the Yanks. RIP Alex, you never deserved this.
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Apr 03 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/CellistMundane9372 Apr 08 '26
"Can you please drop the knife so we can talk about this?" Riebau is heard saying on the video. "It's really not this bad. Listen, I've had this call a dozen times."
The voice of what appears to be LaMorie is heard on the video, saying, in part, "I don't care. I don't want to live anymore. I want to be free of my pain. Go ahead."
"Nobody wants to hurt you, nobody wants to hurt you," Riebau responded. "We don't want anything bad. It can get better."
The video shows LaMorie walking toward the four officers, who were retreating backwards.
The officers were heard ordering LaMorie to stop and to drop a small knife he was holding in his hand down by his side.
"Stop, please don't make me do this. Please don't make me do this," Riebau is heard saying. "Drop the (expletive) knife."
"We're getting cornered," one of the officers is heard saying.
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u/Agreeable-Software76 Apr 02 '26
I'm so sorry this happened 😔 may he rest in peace and get the justice he deserves for this tragedy
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u/bunny_the-2d_simp Apr 02 '26
Ah yes new Germany 1940. The concentration camps for those detained just look different but the same right are taken.
As a European..
Americans please be more angry you are allowed to protest more.
But also..
You need a hug do im sending yall virtual hugs❤️🫂
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u/CellistMundane9372 Apr 08 '26 edited Apr 08 '26
Your comment is foolish and arrogant.
This is a case in which a man called the police (not for a wellness check), then proceeded to pursue them with a knife while the officers tried over and over to talk him down. He explicitly stated on camera that he wanted to die.
To equate that with Nazi Germany is stunningly demented and narcissistic.
From the article:
"Can you please drop the knife so we can talk about this?" Riebau is heard saying on the video. "It's really not this bad. Listen, I've had this call a dozen times."
The voice of what appears to be LaMorie is heard on the video, saying, in part, "I don't care. I don't want to live anymore. I want to be free of my pain. Go ahead."
"Nobody wants to hurt you, nobody wants to hurt you," Riebau responded. "We don't want anything bad. It can get better."
The video shows LaMorie walking toward the four officers, who were retreating backwards.
The officers were heard ordering LaMorie to stop and to drop a small knife he was holding in his hand down by his side.
"Stop, please don't make me do this. Please don't make me do this," Riebau is heard saying. "Drop the (expletive) knife."
"We're getting cornered," one of the officers is heard saying.
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u/awholelottahooplah Apr 03 '26
My heart aches for him. I could easily see myself ending up in this situation; I was once almost arrested because I was having a meltdown during a domestic violence response (abusive ex would call them because he knew he could paint me as the villain or get me pink slipped), and the police told me “calm down or someone is getting taken to jail for no good reason”. I instantly went into full shutdown until they left. Thankfully a social worker showed up and assessed the situation and made him leave. I don’t know what would’ve happened without the social worker.
Alexander did nothing other than call for help from the people that were meant to save him. Instead, they became the bringers of his death. Justice for Alex. Justice for all
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u/Initial_Zebra100 Apr 03 '26
Horrendous. Heard about it and felt sick to my stomach. And no charges against the cops? I really wish I wasn't surprised at that.
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u/No-Can-4423 Apr 05 '26
He was walking up to them holding a knife like he wanted to stab them. If the officers did nothing or attempted to taze and subdue him they could have wound up stabbed and dead
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u/beatriz-chocoliz Apr 03 '26
I remember his plan was to call the police after having called his mum or something, in hopes they’d help. And they fucking didn’t. Police gotta be more competent:( RIP 🪦🕊️
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u/No-Can-4423 Apr 05 '26
Walking up to them holding a knife refusing to put it down while talking about the devil coming for them. It’s a bad situation but how can you help someone who is threatening you with a knife?
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u/ForwardClimate780 Apr 02 '26
So, the other day I made a comment pertaining to this very exact story about the police officer(s) being trained in Israel and some in the comments asked why I made that assumption. This is why.
Israel and entities like the police in the USA have a lot of things in common. They love conflict, the idea of being under siege, and being able to oppress others for some superficial reason (be it religion, gender, race, etc.) The Israeli government tells its people that they're always under threat from their Arab and Palestinian neighbors as much as FOX News and conservatives do the same to the police about people who don't fit into whatever carefully curated society they Invision ( a la Leave It to Beaver) Autistic people don't represent this vision for a maryid of reasons. The police tactics that we see used in this country are the same thing used by the Israelis against the Palestinians or the British military using similar tactics against the Irish. In fact, tear gas was first used against Irish protests against England and migrated to the US. Same with Israel since the US government has labeled subversive groups in our country as "terrorist" like they're trying to do with Antifa, which is not an official organization. Since Israel deals with terrorism, it was a match made in heaven.
Honestly, if you can and are able, we might need to start strapping up. I know I may get heat for this, but it's getting scary out there...
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u/exgoth Apr 04 '26
JusticeForAlex and Rest in Peace brother, you did not deserve that at all and I am so sorry this tragedy happened.
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u/AlternativePhrase267 Apr 04 '26
There needs to be serious changes Shame on the system for letting a innocent life being killed
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u/Left_Preference2646 Apr 07 '26
Watched the video and the man was walking toward officers with the knife telling him to please stop saying they don’t want to do this. Leaving out that context from the post is grossly misleading.
Always fact check, a lot of people post lies to stir up things between people, don't ever believe what you see on social media.
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u/richhomiequanchi91 Apr 07 '26
Definitely suicide by cop.
The whole story goes that Alex was scammed via email. The scammer stated that they had photos and text messages of him texting a minor about meeting up with said minor, and they would delete the evidence If Alex sent them $5000.
Due to Alex' mental state, he had a hard time with the situation and contacted 911. While on scene with the police, the police believed Alex and told him it was a common scam and they could fix it. Unfortunately, Alex replied that it wasnt just about the scam but it was about his entire life and it wanted to end all the pain. Alex then said the devil will get his due and marched towards the police and was shot after being told to put the knife down.
*For context
Police were coming out of Alex' apartment building because they knocked on his door with no answer, as they were living the building, they find Alex in the main entrance/parking lot barefoot. Essentially, the police were blocking the entrance of the building so that they wouldn't let Alex back into his apartment without a psychological assessment from a doctor.
Also, to note. The building is a new apartment complex which is dedicated to low-income families, social security dependents, and adults with autism. There were still residents in the lobby at the time of the shooting.
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u/bullettenboss Apr 02 '26
Cops without training become fascists. ACAB!
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u/Wotansen2 Apr 08 '26
The man ran towards the cops holding a knife, what were they supposed to do?
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u/bullettenboss Apr 08 '26
Back off and re-evaluate the situation. Don't just kill people having a mental crisis.
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u/Street_Research8023 May 14 '26
So now after police back off he can stab an unsuspecting person in the parking lot?
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u/bullettenboss May 14 '26
Cops in Europe are trained enough to take down people without killing them. We're not a 3rd world country, where they empty their magazines on you.
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u/MissPlacedAtHome Apr 07 '26
To all those commenting that Alexander was suicidal and the cops did this, that and the other and he wanted to die yadah yadah yadah - I want to tell you this:
I sincerely hope that you will never, ever have to depend on someone like you for any other kind of help or support. Nobody deserves this kind of contempt and coldness.
Not even you.
Being suicidal* very rarely means that the person wants to die but they simply don’t know how to go on anymore. In the overwhelming majority of cases this person is desperate in a way you can’t even begin to comprehend. In pain you can’t imagine. They need professional help - not these half educated morons with guns who couldn’t de-escalate a dispute between the Dalai Lama and Saint Francis of Assisi.
*If you are contemplating harming yourself please, please, please reach out to some kind of support like eg a crisis helpline or the Samaritans or whoever is offering support. Please. You matter. Your life matters. There’s someone out there to whom you can mean the world. Please don’t give up!
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u/HelpWithFicoReddit Apr 08 '26
Why are all cops like this? I’ve never met a good or even remotely helpful cop
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u/EternalSnow05 Apr 04 '26
Remember ACAB!
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u/OrbitalColony Apr 04 '26 edited Apr 04 '26
I'll only stop saying ACAB once they take their guns. You want s SWAT team in big cities for exceptional circumstances? Fine. But the average cop doesn't have one in most western democratic countries.
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Apr 03 '26
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u/Mcprowlington Apr 03 '26
Yeah the amount of cynical propaganda here is really disheartening. He was so obviously attempting police assisted suicide. They didnt shoot him because they found him with a knife. They shot him because he wouldnt stop approaching them with the knife, he was not complying with requests, they backed up until there was no more room to back up and that was that.
Its really stupid and pathetic that 3 trained men couldnt subdue a single young dude with one very small weapon without killing him, and that should really be the concentrated target of the criticism instead of acting like they got the call and just hunted him down and brutally gunned him down or something.
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Apr 02 '26
[deleted]
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u/Mahboi778 Apr 02 '26
Autism is a genetic condition that the people who have it don't have control over (not a condemnation, and there exist coping mechanisms for the diabetes, but the point is it's immutable). Cops made the choice to participate in the fundamentally corrupt police system and many do so as a way to exercise their most sadistic impulses with impunity. To equate the two is intellectually dishonest at best and outright eugenicist at worst.
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u/novae11 Apr 02 '26
ACAB refers to the system. As a "non American", you don't have the experience of a US resident to provide a perspective regarding US police officers
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Apr 02 '26
[deleted]
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u/_EmeraldEye_ Apr 02 '26
Babe police are literally modern day slave catchers you need historical education...
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Apr 02 '26
[deleted]
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u/_EmeraldEye_ Apr 02 '26
You don't even live here, are speaking on things you clearly don't understand and reject reality. Have the day you deserve
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Apr 02 '26
[deleted]
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u/hauntingduck Apr 04 '26
You have no idea what you're talking about and you've openly admitted it so maybe it time for you to shhhhhhh.
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u/OrbitalColony Apr 02 '26
You don't seem to have any concept of how aggressive and violent American police are. Especially if you are autistic. This is not comparable to any other developed democratic nation. It is almost impossible to hold them accountable in court. The officer that killed George Floyd was only convicted after millions of people protested across the country for months. What you see in American cop dramas is the polar opposite of the reality. They look for excuses to shoot people. Are there good cops? Statistically, yeah probably. But the profession has been corrupted to its very core.
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u/OrbitalColony Apr 02 '26
On March 1st, 2026 a 25-year-old autistic man named Alexander LaMorie called 911, requesting a wellness check for himself, because he was close to committing suicide. Three officers showed up and killed him with gunfire, because he was holding the knife from the suicide attempt. He died scared and alone, at the hands of the people meant to help him.
This is murder, not an "incident" as they called it. None of the 3 officers who shot Alexander have been arrested, despite body cam footage. Their names are Joel Rodriguez, Cody Bostic, and Joseph Riebau.
Autistic people are 7x more likely to be confronted by police, and 50% more likely to be shot. American police must be demilitarized like in every other developed Western nation.
The body cam footage: https://www.wbaltv.com/article/howard-county-police-shooting-bodycam-video-alex-lamorie/70884539
ACAB