Family of Baltimore man who died in police custody demands answers

Todd Karpovich, The Baltimore Sun on Aug 29, 2025

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BALTIMORE — The family of a Baltimore man who died in police custody is being represented by an attorney after Maryland’s chief medical examiner ruled the death a homicide.

Attorneys from Greenberg Law Offices, representing the family of 31-year-old Dontae Melton Jr., will hold a news conference Tuesday to speak on the case.

“Dontae was a son, brother, father of two, and friend to many,” the firm said in a statement Thursday. “In the midst of a mental health crisis, he sought help from police. Instead of compassion, he was met with force. He was handcuffed, forced to the ground, and left injured. … His death was not an accident.”

Earlier this week, the Maryland Office of the Attorney General released more than six hours of body-camera footage capturing Melton’s final encounter with Baltimore Police on June 24. Officers said Melton appeared to be experiencing a mental health crisis when he approached a patrol vehicle in West Baltimore, asking for help.

Officer Gerard Pettiford Jr. is heard on video telling dispatchers that Melton was pulling on his door but “doesn’t look like he needs help.” When Melton tells officers he was being chased, Pettiford responds that no one was behind him. “They’re hiding right now, bro. Trust me,” Melton replies.

Officers eventually restrained Melton in the street and called for medics. He can be heard screaming that he could not breathe. More than an hour later, with no ambulance on scene, officers transported him to a nearby hospital, where he died.

The altercation occurred during an outage of Baltimore’s outdated computer-aided dispatch system, which handles 911 calls and coordinates emergency responses.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner’s homicide ruling Thursday does not mean a crime was committed, only that Melton’s death resulted from the actions of others. The case remains under investigation by the attorney general’s Independent Investigations Division, which probes the state’s in-custody deaths and has identified 10 officers involved.

“This was a preventable tragedy,” Greenberg attorneys said. “His family is demanding answers, transparency, and accountability. They are also calling for systemic reform so that no other family endures the needless loss of a loved one in a moment when help — not harm — was needed most.

“The system must be fixed.”

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