Woman, 18, wielding knife shot dead by San Mateo deputy

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(06-06) 20:44 PDT HALF MOON BAY -- An 18-year-old woman with a knife was shot and killed Tuesday night by a San Mateo County sheriff's deputy near Half Moon Bay, authorities said.

The woman, Yanira Serrano-Garcia, had special needs and had stopped taking her medication, relatives said Wednesday. The family called for an ambulance Tuesday night hoping she would receive medical help, said her aunt, Irma Miramontes.

Serrano-Garcia was armed with the knife when she was confronted by a deputy shortly before 9:30 p.m. at the Moonridge housing complex on Miramontes Point Road east of Highway 1, authorities said.

"Upon arrival there was a confrontation with the subject and, fearing for his life, the deputy discharged his weapon," said Deputy Rebecca Rosenblatt, a Sheriff's Office spokeswoman.

She said the deputy, nine-year department veteran Menh Trieu, had no choice.

Serrano-Garcia died at the scene.

Lorenzo Serrano asked why the deputy hadn't used other means to control his sister.

"We want answers," he told reporters. "We want to know what happened. Why didn't (the deputy) use a Taser? I don't know. There's many questions in the air. We just want to know what really happened, and we want justice, basically."

The shooting is under investigation by the Sheriff's Office and district attorney's office.