A suspect was shot in west Phoenix early Sunday morning after assaulting a police officer.
On Saturday night, officers were called to a home near 43rd and Missouri avenues after a family member reported that a 49-year-old man was on drugs and possibly hallucinating, police said. The woman explained that she was concerned the man was causing problems with neighbors who were having a party.
When officers arrived to the neighborhood, it was determined that no crime had been committed and the man assured police he would stay inside his home, officials said. Police officers decided that no further evaluation was needed and left the area.
Just hours later, around 1 a.m., police received a second call from the same family member saying the suspect was carrying a staple gun and knife and was "roaming around the neighborhood," a police spokesman said.
When officers arrived in the neighborhood, they found the man near an alley at 40th Drive just south of Missouri Avenue, authorities said. When the officers got out of the car the man approached them but stopped briefly to put down a staple gun he was carrying.
Again, the suspect began to walk towards the officers who were backing away from him, police said. The man grabbed a 24-year-old female officer, raised a knife and attacked her.
Police tell me, this scene is a terrifying example of how a routine call can turn dangerous in seconds. They say, a man grabbed an officer and tried to stab her with a knife. She was forced to fire. Suspect is expected to be okay. Live report coming up on #abc15 pic.twitter.com/0xfHURCRLG
— Megan Thompson (@MeganABC15) May 6, 2018
The officer was able to push the man away and shot him, police said. Both officers "took cover" but the suspect continued to charge at officers a second time. Because the suspect was no longer armed with a weapon, officers were able to safely detain the man after a short struggle.
The man was taken to the hospital with gunshot injuries but is expected to be OK, officials said. Neither of the officers involved in the incident were injured.
Authorities have not released the name of the suspect or the officers. The female officer who shot the suspect has two years of experience in the field.
The shooting marks the 35th officer-involved shooting in the Valley this year. On Saturday, Scottsdale police shot and killed a bank robbery suspect near Scottsdale and McDowell roads.
During that shooting, the armed suspect entered a bank and demanded cash from a teller. The man then fled with an undisclosed amount of money but was approached by a suspect near Scottsdale and McKellips roads, officials said.
Investigators are still trying to determine what unfolded before and during the shooting and the suspect's name had still not been released as of Sunday morning.
