The suspect refused verbal instructions to drop the knife and advanced towards a police officer, at which point that Wilmington Police officer discharged their department-issued firearm., according to police.
WILMINGTON, DE (DNTV): It’s not shocking we are hearing about another police-involved shooting and Sadly, the trend of fatal police shootings in the United States seems to only be increasing, with a total 238 civilians having been shot, 30 of whom were Black, as of March 27, 2023.
To date, Delaware has seen four police-involved shootings, one of which was fatal, and now Wilmington Police can add one more to that growing list as they are on scene investigating yet another police-involved shooting that occurred in the 600 block of South Heald Street.
Police say at approximately 8:46 a.m., Wednesday April 12, 2023, Police officers were dispatched to a residence in the 600 block of South Heald Street after receiving a 9-1-1 call about a suicidal subject armed with a knife who was actively stabbing himself. Upon arrival, officers made contact with the suspect, a 35-year-old male., police said in a news release.
According to police spokesman Dave Karas, “The suspect refused verbal instructions to drop the knife and advanced towards a police officer, at which point that Wilmington Police officer discharged their department-issued firearm, striking the suspect once.”
Officers took the suspect into custody police said, and immediately began to render aid prior to the arrival of paramedics. He was then transported to the hospital for treatment of a gunshot wound and a life-threatening, self-inflicted stab wound. The suspect is listed in critical condition.
Police recovered the knife at the scene, and charges are pending further investigation., Karas explained.
The police officer was not injured and Karas added that the incident was still under investigation by the Criminal Investigations Division, the Office of Professional Standards and the Delaware Department of Justice.
It’s not known why the officer did not chose to use non-lethal force or why a crisis counselor wasn’t dispatched to the scene in an attempt to deescalate the situation, and police are not making any further comments on the incident citing. “This is an ongoing investigation and no further information will be released at this time.”
In 2022, there were 1,096 fatal police shootings. In 2021, there were 1,048 fatal shootings. Additionally, the rate of fatal police shootings among Black Americans was much higher than that for any other ethnicity, standing at 5.9 fatal shootings per million of the population per year between 2015 and March 2023.
