FBI Issues Apology on Shooting

The FBI apologized Wednesday for shooting an unarmed man during a search for a bank robber.

“Let me express our sincere sorrow for this unfortunate accident,” said Lynne Hunt, the agent in charge of the FBI’s Baltimore office. “We will do everything necessary to complete a full investigation of the facts.”

In her first public remarks since 20-year-old Joseph Schultz was shot in the face Friday as he sat in a car with his 16-year-old girlfriend, Hunt offered few new details about the incident and defended her agency’s policy against providing further public information.

“It would be irresponsible for me to provide specific details,” Hunt said.

She said that four agents were involved in the incident, but she refused to name them. Hunt said the agent who did the shooting asked to be placed on administrative leave after the incident.

She also played down the significance of the weapon, an M4 assault rifle.

“You should not get hung up on the word ‘rifle,’ ” Hunt told reporters. “I know that many people think rifles are these huge, horrible guns.”

Hunt said the car Schultz was riding in was similar to the one FBI agents were pursuing after the robbery.

After the shooting, agents pulled Schultz and his girlfriend from the car and handcuffed them before calling a helicopter to take him to the hospital.

The wounded man remained hospitalized Wednesday in serious condition with a shattered right cheek and jaw.