A woman took to social media Wednesday to tell the tragic story of her son’s suicide after what she said was a humiliating experience with Maryland state police officers who mocked and ridiculed him instead of helping him in a moment of need.
Jane Bailey said four state troopers responded
is not blaming the cops for her son’s death but is demanding their names. She said she has one name but needs three more. She is asking the public for
but is wanting their names and is wanting to meet with them
posted a photo of her son, Chris Bailey’s, truck in the middle of the road with an empty trailer attached calling for people to figure out the officers names involved towing her sons boat.
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telling the world about her son’s final days before killing himself, which started with Maryland state police officers mocking her son and refusing to help him.
Jane Bailey took to Facebook posting a picture of her son, Chris Bailey’s, truck in the middle of the road with an empty trailer attached calling for people to figure out the officers names involved towing her sons boat.
“I want to know the names of all four troopers (I have obtained one) to arrange a meeting with their CO. I want them to hear the whole story of how my son hung himself Sunday morning – because of his perceived humiliation. I want them to learn from seeing my distraught eyes – that a simple act of kindness to kid who did nothing wrong could have changed the outcome. To learn that you never know what the Maryland citizen is going through when they are stuck in a bad situation on the road – through no fault of their own. “
With the goal in mind of being a successful crabber, Chris worked three jobs saving up money to help him get closer to his goal. According to his mother, he worked all winter, so he could buy parts and equipment for his boat. Chris put the left over funds towards a new truck two weeks ago.
On the night of May 17, Chris baited his lines and made his plan to head towards Dorchester, CO as that is where the crabs are migrating. Unfortunately, the following day, after crabbing for a few hours Chris only caught a bushel and a half. He had to stop in the middle as his boat started having engine issues. He headed back to shore and loaded his boat back on the trailer.
On Chris’s way back home he stopped at a red light in Camridge. When the light turned green, he pulled forward, but the boat did not as the boat wench and safety chain broke. The break caused his boat to roll off the trailer and in the middle of Route 50. Chris attempted to put the boat back onto the trailer but failed.
Four state troopers pulled up and Chris requested assistance in loading the boat back onto the trailer. Instead of helping, the officers pulled out their cell phones taking videos and laughing at him, according to the Facebook post.
Eventually, the officer’s advised they were unable to assist and he would need to call Bradshaw’s Towing to lift the boat on the trailer
Jane wrote that Chris complied with the officers request but asked them to stop recording, but they refused to.
The wrecker truck arrived and advised they would need to be paid $3500 in full to move the boat, she continued to describe in the caption.
According to the Facebook post:
“He told them all he didn’t have any money, and if he could have an hour he could get 3 or 4 friends there to help him lift it. They gave him 15 mins to decide – pay (now reduced to $1500 when they found out he didn’t have insurance) immediately or they would impound and he would have to pay the $3500 plus fines and fees and storage.”
At that moment, Jane was judging a goat show in Howard County. She saw her son calling and when she answered, he was “sobbing – hot – tired – and beside himself,” and asking for advice. She could hear the troopers laughing at him in the background and told him to put it on his credit card and they will figure out what to do.
With the weight of the world on his shoulders because he couldn’t fill his crab orders and had payments coming up for the truck, he agreed to pay the $1500.
That was just the beginning of the downward spiral. After the interaction with officers, Chris found out the motor was unrepairable, the pull cord broke at the dock, and all of his buyers canceled their orders for Memorial day weekend because he couldn’t produce them for Friday and Saturday. All of these stresses and smaller ones lead to Chris committing suicide.
Jane later found out that the wrecking company posted a video of their interaction online. The video has since been removed, but the comments are still there. In the comments, there is a screenshot of an officer smiling. Along with the picture, the comments read that the officer appeared to be laughing.
The towing company then created a press release post on Facebook giving their side of the story.
“Our condolences go out to the family and friends of Chris Bailey. Mr. Bailey worked the water and was proud of his efforts as a Chesapeake Bay Waterman. His loss is one nobody would ever seek. It has come to my attention that our company and the Maryland State Police are being blamed for his loss. It is being said that I purposely price-gouged the young man and made threats toward him. Anyone who has known me for my fifty-four years on this earth, thirty-seven years in the repair and towing business, and nearly fifteen years as a business owner know this would never be true. No words I write can lessen this loss, but I do feel I must explain what occurred that day. On Saturday the 18th of May, Mr. Bailey contacted my company to assist in getting his boat, which had fallen from his trailer into a major intersection, out of the roadway and back onto his trailer. I explained that several options existed, including use of a rollback to pull the off the road surface- we would then get out of the road and place it back on the trailer. Mr. Bailey declined that, and preferred use of a rotating wrecker to prevent any further damage to the boat. We explained that, for recoveries, we typically bill $1,500/Hour for that truck’s services. This charge is reflective of the piece of equipment’s price, its extremely high operating expenses, and the experience required of its operator. Mr. Bailey said he wanted that truck dispatched and would determine how to make payment. Police had made clear the intersection could not remain blocked. The truck arrived on scene with operator and a second technician. The truck was on scene for approximately two hours. Following the recovery and placement of the boat on the trailer, Mr. Bailey came to our physical location and made payment. We charged a rate one-half of normal charges in an effort to be fair to the young man. We did this out of compassion with knowledge he would be forced to pay out of pocket. He at no times made any complaint as to service or price. Indeed, when I attempted to further explain the breakdown of charges, he said he was happy with everything. He made credit card payment and continued on to his destination. We regularly post photos and information related to services rendered, as an example of the abilities of our equipment and crews. We did not laugh at, nor did we fault Mr. Bailey. After everything had occurred, we were under the impression we had provided an appreciated service to the young man. Again, my condolences to Mr. Bailey’s family and friends. His loss is a terrible one.”
Maryland State Police was notified about Jane’s post and opened an investigation, according to the departments Facebook.
“An investigation into these allegations has been initiated by Lieutenant Timothy Corbin, commander of the Easton Barrack. Lt. Corbin is attempting to contact the family and will keep them updated on information. The preliminary investigation indicates that three troopers were on the scene on May 18th. One made contact with Mr. Bailey and two directed traffic around the blocked lanes and had no contact with him. The trooper investigating took pictures of the scene in the event a crash report needed to be filed. There is no evidence at this time that troopers posted these pictures or any videos to social media.”
Before posting the picture, she made an initial post asking friends to find out the names of the officers.
Jane ended her second post calling for a refund of the $1500 to be paid towards his funeral or $1500 worth of negative reviews to Roy Bradshaw’s Body shop and towing company on Facebook, Google, and Yelp.
