A man who’s accused of shooting a Baltimore County police officer in the parking lot of the Wilkens Precinct experienced a severe mental health breakdown and tried to die by suicide, his attorney said Friday.

During a bail review hearing in the District Court of Maryland for Baltimore County in Towson, Andrew Britt’s attorney, Tony Garcia, said his client “thought he was going to pass that day.”

“Mr. Britt had a mental health breakdown that day,” Garcia said. “There’s nothing between him and these officers.”

Garcia asked the judge to release his client on home detention.

Britt, he said, wants to express his “severe remorse” to law enforcement.

But Deputy State’s Attorney John Cox requested that the judge hold Britt without bail, arguing that he was “obviously a danger to the community and a risk of flight.”

District Judge Krystin J. Richardson later ordered Britt, 27, of Windsor Hills, to be held without bail while he awaits trial on two counts of attempted first-degree murder and related offenses.

“These are very serious allegations,” Richardson said. “This court has concerns for public safety.”

Outside the courthouse, Garcia said he was disappointed but understood the decision. “What we don’t understand is what caused our client to snap that day,” he said.

Garcia said he and his client are exploring whether to pursue a plea of not criminally responsible.

‘We don’t know what he was thinking'

Law enforcement provided the following account:

On March 13, Britt walked into the Wilkens Precinct and through the glass struck up a conversation with an officer who was behind a desk.

After a few minutes, Britt went out into the parking lot. He then approached a different officer who was filling up a police vehicle.

Next, Britt walked back up to the officer, pulled a gun out of his waistband and fired at him. The officer took cover and returned fire.

Britt shot Officer Jordan Riddick and then collapsed from his own gunshot wounds. Medics took them to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center.

Baltimore County Police Chief Robert McCullough appeared this week on WBAL NewsRadio and stated that law enforcement still does not know of a motive for the shooting.

Police, he said, “interviewed the suspect in this case.”

“At this point, we don’t know what he was thinking,” McCullough said. “I can’t speculate to what was going through his mind, or what brought him to that point that day.”

But McCullough said that “our officers weren’t specifically targeted.”

Riddick, he said, was “doing well” and “in good spirits.”

Who is Andrew Britt?

Britt graduated from Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Baltimore.

The CollegeBound Foundation in 2016 featured him in a video as its scholar of the week.

The foundation described him as an avid reader and writer who wanted to attend Cornell University or the U.S. Naval Academy.

Britt aspired to start his own business to provide sports therapy to student athletes at public high schools, according to the website. He reported that he admired Mark Zuckerberg for creating Facebook to keep people connected.

“You grow up, and you mature by yourself,” Britt said in the video about college. “You become the young man or the young woman, so you can eventually provide for yourself and later on in years provide for others.”

Britt played defense back in 2017 and 2018 for the Salisbury University Sea Gulls football team. He earned a bachelor’s degree in 2022 in exercise science, and started that same year as a teacher at Liberty Elementary School on Maine Avenue in Central Forest Park in West Baltimore.

In 2021, the Maryland State Police arrested Britt during a traffic stop U.S. 50 near Suburban Drive in Cambridge after reporting that they spotted a Springfield Armory XD .45-caliber handgun in the driver’s side door that was loaded with six rounds.

Britt told the troopers that the gun did not belong to him.

He did not have a wear-and-carry permit.

Dorchester County District Judge Melvin J. Jews ordered Britt to be held without bail. He later pleaded guilty to having a loaded handgun in a vehicle for a sentence of three years in prison, all but 30 days suspended, plus three years’ supervised probation.

In a statement, Sherry Christian, a spokesperson for Baltimore City Public Schools, wrote that it is “committed to fair hiring practices that provide opportunities for qualified individuals while ensuring a safe and productive work environment.”

Christian said the school system reported that it reviewed a background check for Britt and determined that the conviction “did not warrant disqualification from employment.”

“City Schools remains dedicated to fostering a workplace that upholds integrity, fairness, and second chances where appropriate,” Christian said. “While we stand by our decision and will continue to prioritize both safety and opportunity in our hiring practices, we also acknowledge the seriousness of the charges against Mr. Britt and are collaborating with law enforcement.”

During a hearing in the Cambridge gun case, Candes Daniels, Britt’s attorney, said her client was interning at Competitive Sports Performance and working at Dollar General.

Britt, she said, needed two more classes to graduate.

Daniels said her client also volunteered at two middle schools along with a boxing gym in Baltimore.

“He is a good kid, your honor,” Daniels said. “This situation he would just like to put behind him.”

When he was given the chance to speak, Britt echoed her comments.

He said he would like to get back to completing the goals that he had set for himself.

— Baltimore Banner reporter Clara Longo de Freitas contributed reporting to this article.