Alexander “Alex” LaMorie
The Estate of Alexander “Alex” LaMorie, a 25-year-old person with autism, as well as Dr. Jill Harrington, Alex’s mother, today (October 29) filed a lawsuit in federal court against Howard County, Maryland and three Howard County Police Department (HCPD) officers who shot and killed Alex after he called 911 for help and police encountered him in the throes of a mental health crisis outside his home at Patuxent Commons in Howard County—a housing community for adults with autism and disabilities. The Complaint alleges violations of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, as well as claims of negligence, gross negligence, and wrongful death. Plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Andrew Levy, Jamie Strawbridge, Neel Lalchandani, and Michael Abrams of Brown, Goldstein & Levy, LLP, and James Zafiropulos of the law firm Tornatore & Zafiropulos.
“Alex’s preventable and senseless fatal shooting has impacted every part of our lives—leaving indelible, enduring trauma and grief. In Alex’s memory, this lawsuit is both a quest for accountability and a way to effect meaningful change,” said Dr. Harrington, Alex’s mother.
Dr. Jill Harrington, Alex’s mother
The suit alleges that Alex called 911 for help with a cyber extortion, then talked with police officers on the phone; by that point, he was in the throes of a mental health crisis and expressed to the officers a risk of self-harm. Although Howard County and its police department also knew that Patuxent Commons residents could have specialized needs and had training and mental health resources available, the four responding officers arrived without a coordinated plan or specialized support. Instead, they relied on a force-first response, failed to involve mental health specialists, failed to de-escalate the situation, and had no tasers despite recognizing before the shooting that such less-lethal options were appropriate.
Alex was not suspected of a crime, had made no threats, and was waiting for assistance when officers found him more than 100 feet away in the Patuxent Commons parking lot, visibly in crisis and holding a small cooking knife by his side. Officers initially waved him to approach them, drawing him closer, then maintained a line of pointed firearms rather than creating space or using available de-escalation techniques. After making statements reflecting suicidality, Alex walked forward with the knife held down and pointed backward. When he was about 15 feet away, PFC Joseph Riebau, Officer Joel Rodriguez, and Officer Cody Bostic fired twelve rounds, killing him. The County’s failures to accommodate Alex’s disabilities and use appropriate crisis-response resources unnecessarily escalated the encounter into an avoidable lethal, tragic confrontation.
“Alex’s killing by Howard County police officers was a preventable tragedy, and it was caused by the County’s violation of federal disability law,” said Jamie Strawbridge, partner at Brown, Goldstein & Levy, LLP. “This suit seeks accountability for those failures so that people experiencing disability-related mental health crises receive help—not an unnecessarily escalated, lethal response.”
The Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act are federal statutes that prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities. Prohibited discrimination under these statutes includes failure to make reasonable modifications to policies, practices, or procedures to ensure disabled citizens have equal access to Howard County programs and services (including emergency services) and equally effective communication.
Born June 24, 2000, Alex was raised in a family defined by service and duty. His father, a Naval Academy graduate, died while on active duty when Alex was six, and, because of Alex’s disabilities, Alex was qualified as his father’s permanent dependent, which allowed him to be buried with his father at a national veterans cemetery. His stepfather, LTC David F. Carey, U.S. Army (Ret.), is a decorated combat veteran, and generations of Alex’s family served in the military, law enforcement, and fire service. Diagnosed with autism as a young teenager, Alex became a disability and grief advocate, public speaker, writer, artist, and member of the Autism & Grief Project Advisory Board. He shared his experiences through Autism Speaks, appeared as a panelist at San Diego Comic-Con, and inspired his mother, Dr. Harrington, a licensed clinical social worker, educator, author, and grief expert, to create Routledge’s Superhero Grief series, to which Alex contributed as an author and artist.
The Complaint was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. Read it here. The Plaintiffs are the Estate of Alexander LaMorie and Dr. Jill Harrington. The Defendants are Howard County and HCPD police officers Joseph Riebau, Joel Rodriguez, and Cody Bostic.
ABOUT JAMIE STRAWBRIDGE
Jamie Strawbridge represents individuals in cases involving civil rights, disability rights, police misconduct, and housing discrimination. Jamie also represents companies in high-stakes commercial litigation, including ownership disputes and breach-of-contract claims. Since joining BGL, Jamie has litigated cases in state and federal court and in arbitrations. Jamie also has significant appellate experience. Learn more about Jamie.
ABOUT ANDREW LEVY
Andy Levy is widely regarded as one of Maryland’s premier trial and appellate lawyers, equally comfortable in civil and criminal courtrooms, before a jury, judge, or arbitrator. He is a Fellow of both the American College of Trial Lawyers and the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, one of the few lawyers in the country to have been inducted as a Fellow of both organizations. He is listed in Best Lawyers in America in nine categories: Appellate Practice, Bet-the-Company Litigation, Civil Rights Law, Commercial Litigation, Criminal Defense – General, Criminal Defense – White-Collar, Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions – Plaintiffs, Labor & Employment Litigation, and Real Estate Litigation. Learn more about Andy.
ABOUT NEEL LALCHANDANI
Neel Lalchandani represents individuals, nonprofits, and companies in a diverse array of civil rights and commercial matters. Among other victories for his clients, Neel has helped secure several of the largest payments in Maryland history for victims of police misconduct, including more than $80 million for innocent men imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. Learn more about Neel.
ABOUT MICHAEL ABRAMS
Michael Abrams rejoined Brown, Goldstein & Levy in March 2026. He is an experienced litigator with a diverse practice covering disability rights, criminal law, commercial litigation, employment discrimination, police misconduct, and all kinds of appeals. Michael has argued in federal and state appeals courts, most recently as counsel for the ACLU of Maryland at oral argument before the Fourth Circuit on a class action challenge to ICE enforcement practices. At the trial level, he has played a key role in significant team achievements, including: a novel ruling on the police killing of a person in a mental health crisis; state compensation for a man wrongfully sentenced to life in prison; and transformation of a university’s accessibility practices for students with disabilities. Learn more about Michael.
About Brown, Goldstein & Levy, LLP
Founded in 1982, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a law firm based in Baltimore, Maryland, with an office in Washington, DC. The firm is nationally recognized in a wide variety of practice areas, including complex civil and commercial litigation, civil rights, health care, family law, criminal defense, and appellate advocacy. Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a client-centered law firm that brings decades of experience and passionate, effective advocacy to its clients’ fight for justice.
PLEASE FIND MEDIA COVERAGE BELOW
Alex LaMorie’s family sues Howard County, says 911 call for help was met with guns | The Baltimore Sun (October 29, 2026)
Family of man with autism killed by Howard County police announces lawsuit | CBS NEWS (October 29, 2026)
Family of man with autism killed by Howard County police announces federal lawsuit | CBS NEWS Baltimore (October 29, 2026)
Family of autistic Columbia man killed by police sues Howard County | The Baltimore Banner (October 29, 2026)
Family of autistic man shot, killed by Howard County Police files federal lawsuit | FOX45 News (October 29, 2026)