Woman moved toward Broward deputy with knife before he fired, sheriff’s office says
A deputy fired his weapon and killed a woman in Deerfield Beach on Monday night after she continued to move toward him armed with a large knife, ignoring his commands for her to drop it, according to the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
Around 7 p.m., deputies arrived at the intersection of South Federal Highway and Southeast 10th Street after receiving a call that a woman was waving a knife and stabbing a large black bag inside a shopping cart, said Miranda Grossman, a sheriff’s office spokeswoman.
Deputies say they arrived to find the woman was holding two large knives, each about 18 inches long. One deputy approached the woman and she moved toward him swinging one of the knives overhead “in an aggressive manner,” Grossman said.
The deputy tried to de-escalate the situation and asked her to drop both knives, but she refused and kept moving at him. He fired his gun in response, striking the woman, Grossman said.
Deputies at the scene began CPR and other life-saving measures until BSO Fire Rescue paramedics, who declared her dead, arrived, Grossman said.
No one else was injured during the confrontation, according to the sheriff’s office. The sheriff’s office has not named the 60-year-old woman pending notification of her next of kin.
As with all shootings in which an officer or deputy fires his or her weapon, the shooting is under investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
The sheriff’s office placed the deputy on administrative assignment pending further investigation, Grossman said, which is policy in deputy-involved shootings.
