A 24-year-old man was shot and killed by a police officer after he smashed his way into a Point Loma home and armed himself with a knife from the kitchen, San Diego police said.

Officers were first sent to Trieste Drive near Santa Barbara Street after a woman called 911 about a man who had banged on her doors and windows “demanding a knife so he could kill himself,” said homicide Lt. Mike Holden.

When officers arrived about 6:05 a.m., the man started hurling bricks at them from the front yard of a house across the street, Holden said. One of the bricks hit a patrol car, but no officers were struck.

The man then turned and ran toward the home with officers not far behind. They lost sight of him, but soon heard the sound of breaking glass.


Officers found a glass-paned side door that had been smashed and went inside where they found the man holding a kitchen knife to his throat.

The officers repeatedly told the man to drop the weapon, but he pointed it at officers and quickly walked toward them, Holden said.

Two officers fired at the suspect, one with an AR-15 rifle and the other with a less-lethal beanbag shotgun.

The man was hit by at least one rifle round and collapsed, Holden said. Officers rendered medical aid, but he died before he could be taken to a hospital.


It was unclear if the man was struck by any of the beanbag rounds.

Two residents were asleep upstairs at the time of the shooting, Holden said. Neither were injured.

As officers investigated, a resident turned over a backpack found a couple of blocks away. It’s unclear if the bag belonged to the suspect.

The man has been identified, but his name won’t be released until his family has been notified. The officer who killed him is a 15-year veteran.


Twitter: @LAWinkley


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lyndsay.winkley@sduniontribune.com