Police Forced To Shoot, Kill Man Wielding Pickaxe
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- The President of the Miami-Dade Police Benevolent Association is speaking out after he says three Miami-Dade officers were forced to shoot and kill a man wielding a pickaxe in Palmetto Bay Tuesday night.
"It's something that officers don't like to do but they did what they were trained to do," said Miami-Dade P.B.A. President John Rivera.
Rivera told CBS4's Peter D'Oench, "As the officers were trying to find the subject in one bedroom, he suddenly came out and lunged at them with a pickaxe and they instinctively had to discharge their firearms for their own protection and safety."
"Without a doubt, once you get to a scene like that and you know that somebody is using a weapon to destroy property and is acting violent, your alert is already up," said Rivera. "You really don't have much time to think. It's really a precautionary thing that you learn in training and that training kicks in. You really don't have time to think about anything."
Around 9:30 p.m., officers were sent to S.W. 88th Place and 183rd Terrace after police received word that a man was breaking vehicle windows and puncturing tires with a pickaxe, totaling six cars.
As officers arrived together with family members, the man, 25-year old Ethan Rincon, ran inside his home and locked the front door. Family members let the three officers in.
"Once inside there was a confrontation with the individual with the pickaxe, where officers discharged their firearms," said Miami-Dade Detective Dan Ferrin.
"There were multiple pops, like somebody just emptying out a clip," said a neighbor who heard the gunfire and did not want to give his name.
Rivera said it was a very dangerous situation.
"Some people might ask, why not shoot for the leg or arm?" Rivera said.
"That's good for TV and it makes good theatrics but that does not happen in real life. We are never trained to shoot someone in the arm or leg. We are always trained to shoot center mass."
The officers attempted CPR until Miami-Dade Fire Rescue arrived and pronounced Ricon dead on the scene.
Ricon was arrested in February for battery and disorderly intoxication. He had a trial coming up in April. On his Facebook page, he was listed as an F.I.U. Student and a fan of electronic dance music.
Neighbors said they had not seen any problems at the home before and it was not known what caused Rincon to act the way he did.
"It is a sad situation," said neighbor Jay Montero. "He was only 25. That is pretty young. I don't know what happened inside that home, if police did the right thing."
Neighbor Ann Burnside said, "It sounded like he may have had some mental health issues. I feel very sad for that situation."
Another neighbor, who did not want to give her name said, "There was no indication of any problems with him in the neighborhood. I am just as shocked as anybody else. I think he was just a troubled young man. The young man was taxing a pickaxe to his vehicle and other neighbors' vehicles and was breaking windows and slashing tires and, of course, police were called."
She said, "It's very tragic. I don't know what the situation was. I guess they felt threatened. I don't think it's a good situation, especially when such a young man gets shot. But I guess police were doing their job."
Rincon's family members were seen parking vehicles in a back yard at the home but declined to say anything.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is conducting the investigation, which is standard procedure.
The officers are not being identified. They have between 18 and 21 years experience in law enforcement. Rivera said the P.B.A.'s attorneys have spoken with the officers.