BALTIMORE—Calling the incident “a heartbreaking and unforgivable error” that they would investigate thoroughly, the Baltimore Police Department apologized Thursday for tasing an innocent man that they meant to shoot. “This morning, what was supposed to be a routine traffic stop turned tragic when an officer accidentally subdued a man with nonlethal means instead of shooting him in the chest multiple times,” said police spokesperson Gregory Hansen, adding that the officer in question had immediately been placed on paid leave, as there was no excuse for allowing an innocent man to get away from that kind of encounter alive. “Although body camera footage clearly indicates the officer was reaching for his gun with a clear intent to kill, he mistakenly used a Taser instead, thus inflicting far less damage. Needless to say, this officer feared for his life, so anything besides making a snap judgment and senselessly killing the suspect was absolutely the wrong call. We will never allow this to happen again.” At press time, law enforcement officials added that they were thankful the Taser had at least managed to induce a heart attack and leave the victim hospitalized for the foreseeable future.