LEXINGTON PARK, Md. – On Thursday, October 23, 2025, at approximately 7:52 p.m., deputies from the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office responded to a welfare check at a residence in Lexington Park after receiving a report that a female had left the home and had taken the caller’s gun. Deputies began searching the area and, at about 9:11 p.m., located the female suspect in a vehicle parked at MedStar Health on East Run Drive.
Preliminary indications are that, after several minutes of attempted communication, the suspect exited the vehicle, fled across the parking lot, and later pointed a handgun at deputies. Two deputies discharged their agency-issued firearms, striking her.
Deputies immediately rendered aid until emergency medical personnel arrived. The suspect, identified as Paige Taylor Hartness, 34, of Lexington Park, was transported by MedStar Aviation to an area hospital, where she remains hospitalized in stable condition. No other injuries were reported.
Corporal Tyler Payne, a 9-year and 11-month veteran, and Deputy Ian Flaherty, a 1-year and eight-month veteran of the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office, are identified as the deputies who discharged their weapons.
Pursuant to agency policy, both deputies have been placed on administrative leave pending investigations by the Sheriff’s Office’s Office of Professional Responsibilities and the Criminal Investigations Division.
This case remains under investigation. Anyone who may have witnessed the incident and has not yet provided a statement is asked to contact Detective David Lawrence at 301-475-4200, ext. 8130, or by email at David.Lawrence@stmaryscountymd.gov.