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UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (AP) — The Latest on a sentencing hearing for a man who attacked a Maryland police station before an officer shot and killed an undercover detective (all times local):
6:30 p.m.
The parents of a slain police detective are criticizing authorities for not seeking criminal charges against the officer who mistakenly shot and killed their son after a gunman attacked a Maryland police station.
James and Sheila Colson spoke at Thursday's sentencing hearing for Michael Ford, who was convicted of second-degree murder in the March 2016 shooting death of their son.
Ford opened fire on a police station before Prince George's County Police Officer Taylor Krauss shot and killed Detective Jacai Colson, mistaking him for a threat.
Sheila Colson described Krauss as careless and reckless and said she believes her son was killed because he was black. Ford also is black.
Krauss testified that he never saw Colson hold up a badge or heard him identify himself as a police officer before shooting him once in the chest.
A grand jury declined to indict Krauss on any charges related to Colson's shooting. Colson's parents sued Krauss and the county.
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6 p.m.
A gunman whose attack on a Maryland police station led to the friendly-fire killing of an undercover narcotics detective has been sentenced to decades in prison.
A judge sentenced Michael Ford to 195 years on Thursday. In November, a jury convicted the 25-year-old man of second-degree murder and other charges.
Ford's two younger brothers, Malik and Elijah Ford, drove him to the police station and videotaped the March 2016 shooting with their cellphones. They pleaded guilty and were sentenced to prison terms of 20 and 12 years, respectively.
Detective Jacai Colson exchanged gunfire with Ford before a fellow officer fatally shot the plainclothes detective, mistaking him for a threat.
Michael Ford testified he was trying to get himself killed by police when he fired his handgun nearly two dozen times outside the station.
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2:10 a.m.
A man who opened fire on a Maryland police station faces a prison sentence for his conviction on a murder charge in the friendly-fire killing of an undercover detective who tried to end the gunman's attack.
Michael Ford is scheduled to be sentenced by a Prince George's County judge on Thursday, more than two months after a jury convicted the 25-year-old man of second-degree murder and other charges.
Ford's two younger brothers, Malik and Elijah Ford, drove him to the police station and videotaped the March 2016 shooting with their cellphones. They pleaded guilty to related charges and also are scheduled to be sentenced Thursday.
Detective Jacai Colson exchanged gunfire with Ford before a fellow officer fatally shot the plainclothes narcotics detective, mistaking him for a threat.
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