Officers Shoot, Kill 'Emotionally Disturbed' Man Wielding Knife in South End: Police

BOSTON, MA — Boston Police shot and killed a suspect in the city's South End overnight Sunday, responding to reports of an "emotionally disturbed 31-year-old" attacking emergency medical technicians on Shawmut Avenue, according to police.

The Boston Police Department told Patch by email emergency medical technicians responded to reports of a young man in his 30s suffering from paranoia and schizophrenia in the 200 block of Shawmut Avenue. Around 12:39 a.m., police were called to the scene, after the man allegedly armed himself with a knife and attempted to stab the EMTs.

According to police, when the officers arrived on scene "they were faced with a lethal force situation, they too engaged the suspect, fighting with him but after failed attempts to disarm the man and deescalate the situation - they were forced to fire at the suspect."

"Unfortunately, it turned ugly. They were attacked with a knife," Police Commissioner William Evans told WCVB early Sunday. "The officers intervened; they tried to disarm. Unfortunately, he just kept coming at the officers and left them no choice right there."

The man was taken to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead, police said. The EMTs and the officers were all treated for minor injuries and released.

Police have not released the man's identity, but his mother, 60-year-old Hope Coleman, told The Boston Globe his name was Terrence Coleman. Sobbing, she told the paper her son's shooting was not warranted, and disputed police accounts that he was armed. Read more here.

In response to the article, Black Lives Matter Boston on Sunday night shared a statement, saying their group "unequivocally stands with the family of Terrence Coleman," and noting the greater likelihood of those with mental illness to be killed by police.

Based on his mother's statement that Coleman was unarmed, "It seems clear the subjective perception of the police of immanent and lethal threat is predicated upon race and zip code," the statement reads in part.

The Suffolk County District Attorney's office will now step in to independently oversee the investigation, and will report out its findings on whether deadly force was justified.

District Attorney Daniel Conley said in a statement to the press that senior prosecutors from his office were on the scene early Sunday, "and will lead a thorough, impartial, independent investigation into the events that transpired on Shawmut Avenue."

Patch will update this story. Lasted updated 8:34 p.m.

Photo by christopdesoto via Flickr/Creative Commons