Andrew S. Raymond, 42, charged and arrested for firing shots at a police car on Tuesday, did not mean to shoot at the officer, his attorney David Martella said to Bethesda Beat.
According to Martella, Raymond, of Darnestown, had seen a suspicious vehicle in the area previously, appearing to evaluate his store, Engage Armament, at East Gude Drive in Rockville, for a future burglary.
“He had contacted the police and met with the police the night before and showed them video and he was communicating in a cooperative manner with the police,” said Martella, a Rockville-based criminal defense lawyer.
During the night of the shooting, the attorney said Raymond saw an unmarked car driving towards the store and believed it to be linked to the previously reported suspicious vehicle activity.
According to Martella, when Raymond went to go see why the vehicle was driving behind the building, “the vehicle suddenly made a U-turn and drove directly at him, and when he put up his hands….to signal to the vehicle to stop, the vehicle accelerated and drove at him.”
Martella said, a few minutes later, the car activated its blue lights which signaled to Raymond it was an officer who was driving, upon which Raymond put down his weapon, took off his jacket, and held up his hands to show the police he was not a threat.
Police said in a Tuesday news release, its officials were proactively patrolling the 700 block of East Gude Drive, due to a recent surge in gun store burglaries.
One such burglary occurred Nov.26 at the Atlantic Guns store, on Frederick Road in Rockville, where the suspects rammed their car into the storefront, broke in, and stole several guns, according to the police.
Martella said a hearing has been scheduled for Raymond at 1 p.m. on Thursday to ask that he be released from jail while the State’s Attorney’s Office does its investigation.
“He’s got a wife and two kids, and I do not believe he should be locked up while this investigation is going on,” Martella said about his client. “He thought he was dealing with very dangerous people that night.”