A man shot by Baltimore police took the witness stand Tuesday as the trial opened of the officer charged with attempted murder in the shooting.
During some two hours of testimony, Michael Johansen, 47, described how he went to burglarize a corner store in the 3000 block of E. Monument St. on a winter morning in 2014 and ended up being shot multiple times by officers.
Officer Wesley Cagle, 46, faces charges of attempted first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, first-degree assault and a firearm violation in connection with the shooting. He is the first city officer to be charged in an on-duty shooting since 2008.
Johansen told jurors that he had already been shot when Cagle approached him. Johansen said he was in pain and asked Cagle whether he had been shot by a beanbag.
"He said, 'No, it was a 40-cal, you piece of [expletive],'" Johansen told the jury. Then, he said, Cagle shot him in the groin.
The two other officers who fired at Johansen — Keven Leary and Isiah Smith — have been cleared in the shooting and are expected to testify for prosecutors.
Prosecutors say Cagle had no reason to shoot Johansen, who was not armed. But a defense attorney said the state has no proof that the bullet that Cagle fired actually struck Johansen.
"They can't prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt," attorney Joe Murtha told jurors.
Murtha described a frantic scene the morning of the shooting. He told jurors that Cagle "embraces the opportunity to come before you," and said the officer would take the stand in his own defense.
"He never intended to kill anybody," Murtha said. "He intended to protect himself and the other officers."
Prosecutors say they determined that Smith and Leary were justified in the shooting because Johansen did not comply with their commands, and reached toward his waistband.
Johansen testified that he has long been addicted to heroin and went to the store around 4 a.m. or 4:30 a.m. on Dec. 28, 2014, to "get some money." He said he encountered officers who shot him as he left the store.
Johansen said that "everything happened so fast." He compared being shot to being stunned by the flash of a camera.
"I could see for a second and then I couldn't see," he said. He said he was conscious the whole time.
Johansen said he spent five weeks in the hospital, and had a kidney and his spleen removed.
Defense attorney Chaz Ball handed Johansen a transcript, totaling about 170 pages, of his interview with detectives in February 2015.
He asked Johansen repeatedly why he hadn't previously told investigators that "an officer stood over you and shot you."
"I don't know the entire interview, but I know what happened that day," Johansen replied.
Johansen said he has pleaded guilty to the burglary of the store and is awaiting sentencing.
twitter.com/aliknez