Last night, La Crosse Police Officers were dispatched to a local community shelter for a subject who was yelling and threatening people with a knife. The subject left the scene in a vehicle just prior to Officers arriving. Officers located the vehicle and stopped it. As Officers were talking with the subject, he suddenly exited his vehicle and lunged at one Officer. The subject removed a knife from his pocket and held it to his own throat. The Officer who was in very close proximity to the subject immediately grabbed the subject’s arms and took him to the ground. Together, the Officers were able to get the knife out of the subject’s hand.
The Officers were not injured, and the subject only received some cuts to his hands. One Officer’s radio earpiece cord was severed during the struggle. The subject was transported to a medical facility for evaluation. The subject admitted he got the knife out because he wanted the police to shoot him.
Assistant Chief Abraham stated, “these officers are commended for their quick actions and concern for human life. This was a situation that could have ended dramatically different, had the officers not put themselves in the line of danger.”
La Crosse PD Newsroom 