Cottonwood police shoot, kill suicidal woman

Cottonwood police shot and killed an armed 60-year-old woman who was threatening suicide on the sidewalk of a main thoroughfare Saturday.

Police spokesman Sgt. Gareth Braxton said that around 3:45 p.m., authorities responded to the Camelot RV Park near Main and 10th streets to calls of a woman threatening to commit suicide.

A witness said they saw a woman voicing such threats while carrying a handgun.

They located the woman, who lived in the RV park, armed with two handguns and threatening suicide.

Police made contact with the woman as she walked down Main Street and failed twice to apprehend her with Tasers, Braxton said.

An officer then used a rifle to shoot the woman as she drew her weapon. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety Shooting Reconstruction Team assisted the criminal investigation and the officer has been placed on administrative leave, which is a common practice following an officer-involved shooting, Braxton said.

A criminal investigation of the officer's actions will be followed by a second investigation to look into whether his actions were within the bounds of the department's policies.

"Obviously, we need to gather all of the facts and make sure we have a complete story as to how the events unfolded, in order to avoid speculation," Braxton said in a written statement. "You can expect a meticulous investigation to occur as you would with any situation such as this."

Police will release the name of the woman on Monday once her family has been notified.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2011/04/02/20110402arizona-cottonwood-officer-involved-shooting.html

Phoenix cop Shoots Suicidal Man After Roomate Calls Cops

Police shot a Phoenix man multiple times at his home Saturday evening near Bell Road and 42nd Avenue after he allegedly threatened officers with a knife.

No officers were injured in the shooting but the man was undergoing surgery and it was unknown whether he was expected to survive until the procedure was complete, said Phoenix Police Sergeant Steve Martos.

Authorities responded to the Desert Meadows Apartment complex in the 16800 block of 42nd Avenue around 6:45 p.m. after receiving a call from a woman who said her roommate was threatening to commit suicide with a knife, Martos said.

Officers found the man in an upstairs bedroom of the apartment and tried to dissuade him from harming himself with the weapon. Martos said one officer deployed a Taser on the suspect when he threatened authorities.

After giving several commands to drop the knife, officers shot the suspect multiple times. The man's roommate was not inside at the time.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2011/01/22/20110122police-shooting-phoenix.html

Mesa police shoot, kill man officers said was suicidal

For the second time in a week, Mesa police said a suicidal man was shot and killed by officers during a confrontation.

The officer-involved shooting occurred late Wednesday night, Mesa Police said, in the 700 block of West Farmdale Avenue.

Police said officers were alerted to the scene at around 8:00 p.m. Negotiators were on scene when the suspect exited the house through the garage for the first time.

Police said the suspect had a gun but did not raise the weapon at officers. Police then fired rubber bullets and a percussion grenade at the man as way to force him to surrender. The suspect instead went back in the house.

Mesa Police Detective Steve Berry said the man exited a second time, and police responded by firing bean-bag rounds at him. Police said the suspect continued to approach officers and raised his weapon at authorities. One officer responded by firing his weapon at the suspect. Details on how many rounds were fired and where the suspect was hit were not available.

Mesa Police said no officers were injured, and the suspect was pronounced dead at the hospital. Police said they were dispatched to the scene after receiving a suicidal person call.

No further details were available.

On Monday, Cole Ravel, 35, died from injuries he received after Mesa police shot him Sept. 30 at an apartment complex at 1840 W. Emilita Ave. as he reportedly came after the officers with a machete.

Police said at the time of the shooting that Ravel's mother told them he had threatened to commit suicide earlier that day.

As one of the officers entered the apartment, Ravel met him with a "large machete-type" knife, police said.

The officer fell in the doorway and as he attempted to back away, Ravel advanced toward him, police said. By then two other officers had arrived and opened fire, striking him multiple times.

The officers chose not to use their Tasers on Ravel because he was too close to them, police said.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/2010/10/07/20101007mesa-police-shoot-kill-man.html