Police Shoot (and kill) Woman At Modesto Elementary School

[Kadie]

Dec 15, 2009 2:59 pm US/Pacific
Police Shoot Woman At Modesto Elementary School


MODESTO (CBS13) ― A woman has been shot by police at a Modesto elementary school after the woman walked onto campus with a large knife and began "injuring herself", according to Modesto police.

snip...
The woman came onto the school campus with a large knife and was "injuring herself". According to police, responding officers shot the woman, "eliminating the problem". She was taken to the hospital with a gun shot wound to the head.

No children were hurt. The school was immediately put on lockdown at the time of the shooting. The children are now being released classroom by classroom.

http://cbs13.com/local/modesto.elementary.school.2.1371879.html



updated...

Dec 15, 2009 2:59 pm US/Pacific

Police Shoot And Kill Woman At Modesto School

MODESTO (CBS13) ― A woman has been shot and killed by police at a Modesto elementary school after the woman walked onto campus with a large knife and began "injuring herself", according to Modesto police.

snip...
The woman came onto the school campus with a large knife and was "injuring herself". According to police, responding officers shot the woman, "eliminating the problem". She was taken to the hospital with a gun shot wound to the head. and was later pronounced dead.

The woman's identity has not yet been released.


http://cbs13.com/local/modesto.elementary.school.2.1371879.html


another source...


Officer Shoots Knife-Wielding Woman At Modesto School
No Children Hurt At Catherine Everett Elementary School

POSTED: 2:20 pm PST December 15, 2009
UPDATED: 3:55 pm PST December 15, 2009

MODESTO, Calif. -- An officer shot a woman Tuesday afternoon who was armed with a knife at a Modesto elementary school, police said. No children were injured.

Sgt. Brian Findlen of the Modesto Police Department said there was an officer-involved shooting at Catherine Everett Elementary School. The school is located at 1530 Mount Vernon Drive.

Findlen said at about 2 p.m., police got a call that a woman with a knife was acting in a bizarre fashion on school grounds.

Officers responded and found it necessary to use deadly force, Findlen said.

According to a photographer at the scene, police said a woman was waving a meat cleaver around, but he didn't know if she threatened officers.

http://www.kcra.com/news/21976178/detail.html

[Lerkfish]

1. seems a bit like overkill, even though I admit that was a threat.

they could have shot her any number of other places besides the head. Or used the stuped tasers.

[Kadie]

3. That is what I was thinking.

This would be a perfect opportunity to use the taser.

:shrug:

[Lerkfish]

6. it would actually be one of the few times APPROPRIATE for a taser.

and I hate the devices, or I guess I just hate the misuse of them.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

13. It absolutely did not call for a taser.

[Uncle Joe]

9. They couldn't taze her, she wasn't pregnant, old, a double amputee in a wheelchair or

holding a baby.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x6606087

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2442323

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x6424341

Furthermore if they allowed her to kill herself, she wouldn't have went to heaven and they couldn't risk that.

[midnight]

2. Isn't this where an application of a taser would be the tool to use. And why

shoot in the head?

[slackmaster]

4. A Vulcan nerve pinch would have done the job

Or they could have allowed her to keep injuring herself until she became unable to function.

Or I could just shut up and let the police figure out how to handle their very difficult jobs.

(Although as a firearm self-defense advocate I have to wonder how she came to be shot in the head. Standard procedure is to aim for center of mass. Maybe she was squirming around.)

[lightningandsnow]

5. How was she "injuring herself"?

I've been a cutter on and off, and although doing it in public does seem like a possible threat, shooting someone seems like serious overkill.

People need more education about what self-harm actually is.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

7. She was assaulting herself (with a deadly weapon) so we shot her in the head.

Makes sense to me. :sarcasm:

Also, I've always wondered why officers of the peace (LEO/firefighters/etc) try to diffuse suicide attempts when the suspect/victim is the only one involved. Like talking people off of a bridge or building. If there's no danger to public then hell, just let them jump... tell them to pull the trigger. it'll make the whole situatino alot less stressfull.

Maybe I'm just being bitter. :shrug:

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

14. Because people with depression can be treated.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

8. We now officially live in a militarized zone.

Shoot and ask questions later. All citizens mentally ill or not are dispensable.

[RamboLiberal]

10. According to this report she charged the officers

in which case IMHO they did the correct thing in using their guns instead of a Taser.

According to police, children were on the playground when for an unknown reason, the woman came on to the campus with what appeared to be either a large butcher knife or meat cleaver, Findlen said. He said she was described as acting bizarre, and hitting herself on the head with the knife.

School officials immediately ushered the children into classrooms as others tried to distract the woman and get her attention. School officials put the school on lockdown and called police.

Findlen did say that some of the children witnesses the woman's actions.

When officers arrived, two officers confronted her. She apparently charged the officers, Findlen said, and at least one of the officers fired shots, hitting the woman.



Read more: http://www.modbee.com/local/story/974325.html#ixzz0Zo18hGSM

[Kaleva]

11. Thank God the police stopped this woman from injuring herself.

[TwixVoy]

12. The sad thing is

if they had used a tazer - thus saving her life while preventing anyone else from being hurt - this thread would already have over 100 angry posts from the DU anti-tazer crowd.