Body Cam Footage Released Of Phx Police Shooting Man With Machete

PHOENIX, AZ — Phoenix police on Friday released body camera footage of one of its officers shooting a man who was waving a machete in the middle of 19th Avenue on May 1.

Police have not identified the man, who was still hospitalized as of Friday.

The shooting is being investigated both internally and criminally and it has not been determined if the officer who shot the man violated the law or department policy, police said in a critical incident report released along with the body camera footage on Friday.

An officer was at a gas station near the intersection of 19th Avenue and Southern Avenue on May 1 when someone told him there was a man waving a machete while walking down 19th Avenue, according to police.

In the video, when the officer calls dispatch about the man, he said it was a possible 918, meaning someone with mental health issues.

The man with the machete then walked to a nearby dirt lot. Another officer drove up to the lot in an attempt to block the man with the machete from going into the street, where officers said he had been threatening drivers earlier.

As she pulled up near him, the man walked toward her yelling in Spanish and invoking the name of Jesus several times. She responded in English, telling him to get back and to put the machete down. She drew a weapon and pointed it at him. It was unclear if he understood her commands, and police said that officers did not understand him because of the language barrier.

The man then walked out into 19th Avenue and another officer yelled at him to put down the machete and then hit him with several bean bag stun rounds.

The man paused for just a brief time after being hit with the bean bags before walking toward the officer again.

The officer then yelled, “Drop the f***ing knife,” and then fired seven shots from his handgun at the man. It's unclear how many times the man was struck. He then dropped the machete and was transported to a local hospital to be treated for his injuries, police said.

When he is released, police plan to book him into Maricopa County Jail on charges of aggravated assault of an officer, police said in the video.