Review finds ‘major concerns’ with York Police response to case of ex-Baltimore County cop who kidnapped, killed his children

An investigation by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office found “major concerns” with how local police in York, Pennsylvania, handled a court order against a former Baltimore County officer who killed himself and his children, officials say.

The attorney general’s office said in a statement it was unable to share details of the findings publicly but noted that it sent a letter to the local district attorney outlining its “major concerns with certain lapses and decisions leading up to this tragic situation.”

Pennsylvania’s top prosecutor began looking into the matter after ex-Baltimore County officer Robert Vicosa’s estranged wife filed a private criminal complaint in November alleging York County Regional Police Chief Timothy Damon blocked a protective order for her and her children.

Vicosa’s wife secured the order Nov. 14 from a Pennsylvania judge but was informed by two York police officers early the next morning that Damon had put a stop to the order, according to her complaint.

Robert Vicosa went on the run Nov. 15 with their two daughters, and shot and killed the two girls, ages 6 and 7, along with an accomplice and himself, as authorities closed in on them three days later.

Vicosa’s wife’s attorney, Harold Goodman, said Thursday that the attorney general investigation’s found was no “criminality,” noting it would have required proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

Still, he said, the findings included “huge, serious lapses by the police department.”

“We, my firm and I, intend to vigorously pursue civil rights and other civil claims for Ms. Vicosa and on behalf of her two deceased, murdered children, against police and others, to vindicate their rights,” Goodman said.

The attorney general’s office said Vicosa’s criminal complaint had been withdrawn.

A spokesman for the York police agency did not respond to a voicemail left Thursday.

York Police previously said the department searched Vicosa’s home on the afternoon of Nov. 15, despite a judge approving a search warrant the night before. By the time police got there, Vicosa and the girls were gone.

In her private criminal complaint, Vicosa’s wife said she was given no explanation for why the police chief blocked her protective order.

The York County District Attorney’s office confirmed it had received the attorney general’s office’s letter Wednesday but said it wasn’t able to provide details about its contents.

“Any information provided to us by the Office of Attorney General will be reviewed, fully considered and analyzed against the information we already have,” said Kyle King, a spokesman for the department.

King also noted the district attorney, David W. Sunday Jr., had initiated a working group in the wake of the killings to understand how to prevent similar tragedies. King said Sunday has met with local police chiefs and victims groups over the past few months.

Vicosa led police on a four-day manhunt in November that stretched from Cockeysville to York County, Pennsylvania. He and his alleged accomplice, Tia Bynum, a Baltimore County police officer, were accused of kidnapping Vicosa’s two daughters, Giana and Aaminah Vicosa, from his estranged wife in York County.

Police, who pleaded with Vicosa and Bynum to drop the girls off at a safe location, said the two committed a robbery and carjacking while fleeing. They also were accused of holding Vicosa’s wife captive the weekend before the manhunt, with Robert Vicosa accused of drugging, threatening and sexually assaulting her.

The situation concluded tragically Nov. 18. A brief police pursuit into Western Maryland ended with a car crash. Police found Vicosa, Bynum and the two girls inside the car with gunshot wounds. Three died at the scene and one girl was flown to a hospital where she later died.

Vicosa was fired by Baltimore County Police last August, which his mother previously said led him to snap.

Internal affairs records indicated Vicosa had been found guilty of being sexually inappropriate with subordinates, including watching inappropriate videos, making sexual remarks and leering. A trial board demoted him from sergeant to officer and took away 45 days of leave.

Charges brought in 2021 accused him of insubordination, sleeping on the job and refusing to be trained. A trial board took away 20 days of leave and he was then fired.

Vicosa previously served as a sergeant in the Catonsville precinct, while Bynum worked in Baltimore County Police’s Criminal Investigations Bureau.