Albany Police Chief Eric Hawkins shared body camera footage Tuesday, showing the moment an officer shot a man armed with a knife a day earlier.
Charges have not been filed as of Tuesday morning, and the suspect’s name was not been released. He’s in stable condition.
"He’s very well-known to law enforcement and has had several contacts," Hawkins said.
Hawkins said officers were responding to a domestic call on Franklin Street late Monday morning. They had been on the scene for more than an hour.
“During that period of time, they were helping this gentleman get items from inside the apartment that he was in, taking them outside of the apartment, so he could go some place else,” Hawkins said.
It was then discovered the man had an outstanding arrest warrant in the city of Albany. Officers tried to take him into custody, and that’s when police say things took a turn.
“He mentions 'you’re going to have to kill me. I am not going in cuffs,'" Hawkins said. "And the officers' immediate reactions were to diffuse, de-escalate.”
But the footage shows the man reaching into his pocket, retrieving a knife.
“They did not grab onto that person until that person placed his hands into that pocket,” Hawkins said.
He said this aligns with how officers are trained nationwide.
Moments later, one of the officers was stabbed, the chief said, adding the footage was too graphic share publicly. Despite this, he said officers still managed to show what he calls extraordinary restraint.
Veneilya Harden, who chairs the Albany Community Police Review Board, said the board will scrutinize the incident. She also encouraged the public to withhold judgments until all the facts are known.
"We don’t have a stance, if you will, on this right now. We have questions,” Harden said. “And consider opportunities for prevention and intervention, so we’re not being reactive. I think you have to see an entire picture to be able to say what actually took place.”
COMING UP: @albanypolice released body cam footage showing the moment an officer shot an armed suspect Monday. Chief Eric Hawkins said officers showed “extraordinary restraint”.
— Spencer Conlin (@SpencerReports) June 21, 2022
Hear more from chief and the city’s Community Police Review Board shortly @SpecNews1Albany. pic.twitter.com/QiGb8FST6B