Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Buffalo Police have released body camera footage from an incident earlier this week in which officers shot a mentally distraught knife-wielding suspect along Hertel Avenue.
In the video, a red circle identifies the weapon and we warn you the video is graphic in nature and there is explicit language at approximately the 3 minute mark.
The video shows officers interacting with a suspect inside and then the conversation leads outside where the suspect displays a knife and is ultimately shot by officers in the street.
Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia says the number one goal of officers in a situation like the one on Hertel is 'de-escalation'. Gramaglia says he believes the officers made numerous attempts to de-escalate inside the address and then by retreating outside where the shots were ultimately fired in the street.
"It was tragic for everyone….they tried everything they could," said Gramaglia in a press conference Wednesday.
Tasers, which are being deployed in the department, were not available to the officers responding in the Hertel incident, nor were the limited number of 'bola wraps' deployed in the department last year.
Officers and a team specially trained in handling mental health situations were not working in the early morning hours Monday at the time of the incident, says Gramaglia.
Gramaglia Monday said Police in District D responded to a threats call from an individual stating someone was trying to kill them early Monday. When officers arrived, they encountered a 31-year-old individual in the stairwell of the apartment building, who was in crisis suffering with a mental health episode. That individual had also produced a large knife, something that would resemble a survival knife.
"Officers were calmly trying to speak with the individual, and they quickly recognize that they needed to exit that stairwell," said Gramaglia on Monday at Buffalo City Hall. "The officers, in every attempt to de-escalate the situation, exited the building and backed out. The individual came down the stairwell and exited the front door, while officers continue to retreat from the building, making their way back to the sidewalk and ultimately into Hertel Avenue. The individual - continuing forward with his knife in his hand - [continued to move] towards the officers. The officers were speaking to him in a very calm manner, trying to help him through with any issues that he was having and trying to engage him in a conversation. At this point, the individual lunged at officers and started running at officers, where two officers discharged their weapon and struck the individual multiple times."
Officers quickly moved in to render first aid to the individual after he was shot, as he was suffering from a mental health crisis. An ambulance was called in, where he was then transferred to ECMC. He is currently listed in serious, but stable condition.
Gramaglia says police have encountered the individual very recently, dating back to this past Wednesday for a separate incident.
No officers involved in the incident were injured
