A city police officer shot a man who pulled a gun on him in an East Baltimore alley late last night, police said.

The man, who was fleeing officers, was shot in the thigh after being chased down the alley, police said.

Police spokesman Robert W. Weinhold Jr. said the incident occurred about 11 p.m., when two officers on routine patrol from the city's tactical unit approached two men in the 2200 block of Federal St.

When the men fled down the 1600 block of Bradford St., the officers gave chase.

One of the men -- unidentified early this morning -- ran off Bradford and into an alley, where he allegedly turned on Officer ++ John Rynn with a .38-caliber revolver. The man pulled the trigger, Weinhold said, but the gun did not fire.

Said Weinhold: "Believing that his life was in danger, [Rynn] fired one shot, striking the suspect in the left thigh."

Police recovered a revolver with four live rounds and two empty chambers, Weinhold said.

The victim was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital for treatment of a wound that is not considered life-threatening, police said.

Rynn, 33 and a five-year veteran, was assigned to administrative duty until an investigation is completed. The other suspect escaped.

Pub Date: 7/11/98