Tucson police have identified the 30-year-old man shot and killed by an officer during a mental-health call on Friday.
Abraham Smith was armed with a piece of broken glass from a mirror in one hand and a 10 to 12-inch kitchen knife in the other, when he was shot by a Tucson Police officer, said Sgt. Kimberly Bay, aΒ department spokesman.
Members of a countywide Mobile Acute Crisis team that deal with mental illness situations went to Smith's mobile home, located in the area of West Grant Road and North Stone Avenue. The team was there to serve Smith a court-ordered emergency mental health petition, Bay said.
The crisis team requested the assistance of the police department's Mental Health Support Team, which is made up of officers who are trained to intervene in crisis situations regarding mentally-ill individuals, Bay said.
When officers arrived, they were advised that Smith was mute and communicated through writing and gestures. The officers attempted to make contact with Smith from outside of the trailer for 10 to 15 minutes, Bay said.
Three officers entered the mobile home, when they encountered Smith coming out of a back bedroom, with what appeared to be two knives in his hands.
Two officers were able to back out of the trailer and out of Smith's way, but officer Ryder Schrage was backed into a fence, and unable to escape as Smith continued to advance, Bay said.
Schrage ordered Smith to stop, and fired his duty weapon.
The officers rendered first aid to Smith until Tucson Fire Department paramedics arrived. He was pronounced dead at the scene, Bay said.
Schrage, a four-year veteran of the police department, and the other two officers were placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure after an officer-involved shooting.
