WASHINGTON — Body-camera video released by the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office demonstrates how quickly a routine traffic stop can escalate.
In the video posted on Facebook, you see a sheriff’s deputy ask a driver to get out of his car, and he does.
But the driver has a gun hidden behind his back.
The deputy calmly asks the man if he has anything in his pockets, but then you hear the click as the driver puts a round in the chamber of the weapon, which the sheriff’s office said was a 9mm handgun.
Suddenly, the deputy starts yelling at the man to put the gun down.
The video shows the deputy drawing his own gun, backing away from the driver and taking cover.
Eventually other deputies arrived and the driver was taken into custody peacefully.
Charges are pending.
The video was recorded Monday and posted Friday on Facebook.
In a statement accompanying the video, Sheriff Mike Evans said, “I am proud of the deputies in this situation. They showed great restraint and relied on their training to resolve the situation.”
