San Francisco Officer Shoots Man In Wheelchair After Getting Stabbed
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) - A man in a wheelchair was shot after he allegedly stabbed a San Francisco police officer in the city's South of Market District Tuesday morning, a police spokesman said.
The shooting happened at about 10:15 a.m. after officers responded to a report of a man vandalizing city vehicles in front of the San Francisco Behavioral Health Services building near 10th and Howard streets, San Francisco police Officer Eric Chiang said.
The man, whose name has not yet been released, was in a wheelchair but was not confined to it, Chiang said.
"He was seen up and moving about a number of times," he said.
Police Chief George Gascon said officers unsuccessfully tried to subdue the man with pepper spray and a bean bag round before the shooting.
Gascon used the incident to again call for Tasers for the department, saying the weapons could be very helpful in situations like this one.
"This is a continuation of a problem that we have, because of the lack of a very useful tool that is not in the arsenal of the San Francisco Police Department," said Gascon.
KCBS' Margie Shafer Reports:
The suspect had a rock and knife in his hand and was slashing the tires of some city vehicles in the area, Chiang said. He did not know what the man's motive was for vandalizing the cars.
Following some sort of altercation, the man stabbed one of the officers and then was shot with a less-than-lethal beanbag weapon, Chiang said. When the suspect did not surrender, he was also shot with a handgun, he said.
Chiang did not know if the officer who was stabbed was the one who shot the suspect.
The officer and the suspect were taken separately to San Francisco General Hospital to be treated for injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening, Chiang said.
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