Maryland Cop Shot Dead Outside Station

Flags were at half-staff across Maryland Sunday night after what authorities say was the totally unprovoked killing of a police officer outside a police station in Prince George's County. Undercover narcotics officer Jacai Colson, who would have turned 29 in a few days, was killed in a firefight after a suspect arrived outside the District III station in Landover and opened fire, the AP reports. The alleged shooter was wounded by police fire and taken into custody. A second man, who police say is the shooter's brother, was also arrested.

A nurse who lives in a nearby building tells the Washington Post that she saw a man in black firing a handgun at the station. "He fired one shot, and then he started pacing back and forth, then fired another shot," she says. "Just looking outside, I'm like, 'Oh my God, look at all these police officers running out, putting their lives really in danger.'" Prince George's County Police Chief Hank Stawinski says officers are devastated by the death of Colson, a four-year veteran of the force. The incident "wasn't about anything," the chief says. The gunman "opened fire on the first police officer he saw." Charges against the two suspects are pending, the New York Times reports. (More Maryland stories.)