Montgomery County Officer Indicted for January 6 Riot Involvement Won’t Face Charges in Shooting Death of Butcher Knife-Armed Suspect

The Maryland Attorney General’s Office has announced that Montgomery County Police Officer Justin Lee, who was suspended from the department after being indicted on charges relating to his involvement with the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capital, will not be prosecuted for the officer-involved shooting death of a man that stabbed four people on July 22, 2023 in Wheaton.

In October, MCPD announced, “In light of Lee’s arrest, he has been suspended without pay, and the department is taking steps to terminate his employment.”   Lee’s offenses on January 6 include assaulting a law enforcement officer and obstructing, impeding, or interfering with a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder.

Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: The Independent Investigations Division (IID) of the Office of the Attorney General today released its investigative reports of the July 22, 2023, fatal officer-involved shooting in the Wheaton area of Montgomery County, Maryland.

On July 22, 2023, at approximately 10:35 a.m., officers with the Montgomery County Police Department responded to a business in the 12200 block of Veirs Mill Road for the report of a stabbing. Once on scene, they located an adult woman who had been stabbed. Approximately one minute after the first 911 call, a second 911 call was received for two women stabbed in the 4100 block of Colie Drive. Upon officers’ arrival, they located two adult women suffering from stab wounds and discovered an adult man suffering from a superficial stab wound.

Officers obtained a description of the male suspect, later identified as Franklin Castro Ordonez, and began canvassing the area for him. Officers located Castro Ordonez in the 4300 block of Havard Street armed with a knife.

Officer Justin Lee gave commands for Castro Ordonez to drop the knife, but he did not comply and then advanced toward Officer Lee while holding the knife. Officer Lee discharged his firearm several times striking Castro Ordonez. Officers called for EMS and performed CPR. Castro Ordonez was pronounced dead on scene. No officers were injured.

The Montgomery County State’s Attorney and the Howard County State’s Attorney have an agreement to review officer-involved civilian fatalities in each other’s jurisdictions.

The IID and the Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office agreed that an interim report would be useful because all aspects of the investigation were final other than the forensic analyses. The IID forwarded its interim investigative report to the Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office on September 28, 2023. The IID sent a supplemental report to the State’s Attorney on December 8, 2023, which provided the results of the autopsy and other relevant testing and concluded its investigation. The Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office notified the IID on March 7, 2024, of its decision not to prosecute the case.

The IID’s reports contain detailed investigative findings and an analysis of relevant legal issues. Because the Howard County State’s Attorney’s Office–not the IID–retains prosecution authority[1] in this case, the reports do not make any recommendations as to whether any individual should or should not be charged. A copy of the investigative reports can be found here.