A man chasing a woman with a knife in Bayonne was shot by police when he allegedly lunged at officers as they confronted him Friday, a source says.
Police were called to a home near Prospect Avenue and East 25th Street for a domestic disturbance and found a man chasing after a woman with a knife, the source says.
Officers confronted the suspect in the street, and he allegedly lunged at them with it, according to the source.
Witness James Flood tells News 4 he saw the man threatening officers with an object in his hand and aggressively approaching them with it, screaming at them. The police officers backed away and told the suspect to stand back but he continued to advance on them.
"The officers was playing defense the whole time, just backing up, backing, telling him to 'calm down, stop, get on the ground,'" said Flood.
The officers opened fire, hitting the suspect twice, the source and witness say.
The suspect is in critical condition. None of the officers was seriously injured.
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Flood, the witness, believes the shooting was justified.
"The officers were doing everything they could do in defense the whole time, they were backing away from him 5 to 8 feet away," he said.
"It's unbelievable," said Bayonne resident Jackie Haley. "Like, you would never think this would happen in your neighborhood."
