I have been reading and reviewing the information about the unfortunate death of the young woman wielding a knife when approached by the police. I do not know enough about policing, tactics, or weapons to make any reasonable or logical comment. I will simply say it was a tragedy for the young woman, police officer and all the affected families.
I am curious where the family was. What sparked within her a belief that her only option was to grab a knife to kill, harm, or maim other humans. Was she attacked? Did she have mental issues that were undiagnosed or treated. Were the other people in the video she attacked mean to her in some way and she thought a slashing was the best solution? I am not trying to blame her or justify her actions but simply to understand the situation.
It is easy to simply focus on the officer involved shooting and her death at the hands of the officer. It appears he saved at least one other life by his actions. There must be more to the story and when we peel back the layers I believe we will find complexities in her life that do not fit into a sound bite, headline or anonymous tweet.
I suggest if we do not address individual, family and caregiver mental health then we are merely moving chairs on the sinking Titanic.
Lastly, the videos appear to show multiple people at the scene. Someone clearly called the police but I did not see anyone attempting to take any action to save those being attacked or to subdue the attacker. I realize not everyone is capable of standing in the breach or taking heroic actions.
Dewayne Belew