Current:Home > StocksArmed teen with mental health issues shot to death by sheriff’s deputies in Southern California -EverVision Finance
Armed teen with mental health issues shot to death by sheriff’s deputies in Southern California
View
Date:2025-04-12 21:16:14
VICTORVILLE, Calif. (AP) — Southern California sheriff’s deputies shot and killed a 17-year-old boy with mental health issues after he armed himself with a knife and locked himself inside a bathroom at a home, authorities said Wednesday.
The teen was being transferred from a hospital, where he had been treated after cutting himself, to a mental health facility when he escaped on Tuesday, San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus said.
The boy, a foster youth who lives in Hesperia, later showed up at a home in Victorville where his sisters live in foster care, Dicus said. Someone at the home called deputies to come arrest him, Dicus said, because he had caused trouble there before.
The teen, who had a knife, locked himself in a bathroom, and deputies tried to get him to come out for about a half hour, according to the sheriff. But when the boy threatened to harm himself, deputies kicked down the door and tried to apprehend him, Dicus said.
A video and still images of the encounter showed the teen holding a knife, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reported. Deputies pepper-sprayed him, and one deputy’s hand was sliced by the knife, the newspaper said.
The teen was backed into a bathtub, where he was shot, Dicus said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The death came less than a month after San Bernardino deputies shot and killed 15-year-old Ryan Gainer. The autistic boy had threatened family members at a home in Victorville and then chased a responding deputy with a garden hoe, the sheriff’s department said.
Dicus said Wednesday that in both cases, deputies were met with violence. He said parents need more access to mental health services for their troubled children, so that law enforcement isn’t the only option in times of crisis.
“My record as sheriff for the last several years is I have championed having a better mental health system,” Dicus said. “The corrections environment and our public environment have been challenged a number of times where the only mental health resource we have in our community is law enforcement, and that’s the only 24/7 resource that we have.”
veryGood! (69)
Related
- Sarah J. Maas books explained: How to read 'ACOTAR,' 'Throne of Glass' in order.
- Dwyane Wade Admits He and Gabrielle Union Had “Hard” Year in Tenth Anniversary Message
- One Tree Hill Sequel Series in the Works 12 Years After Finale
- What to know about Johnny Gaudreau, Blue Jackets All-Star killed in biking accident
- Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
- Fantasy author Brandon Sanderson breaks another Kickstarter record with Cosmere RPG
- TikTok 'demure' trend is a masterclass from a trans woman on respect and kindness
- Judge rejects claims that generative AI tanked political conspiracy case against Fugees rapper Pras
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- As first execution in a decade nears, South Carolina prison director says 3 methods ready
Ranking
- Small twin
- Harris says Trump tariffs will cost Americans $4k/year. Economists are skeptical.
- Justices promise at least 5 weeks between backlogged executions in South Carolina
- 'DWTS' pro dancer Artem Chigvintsev arrested on domestic violence charge
- Appeals court scraps Nasdaq boardroom diversity rules in latest DEI setback
- Neighbor held in disappearance of couple from California nudist resort. Both believed to be dead
- Takeaways from AP report on perils of heatstroke for runners in a warming world
- Conservative group plans to monitor voting drop box locations in Arizona
Recommendation
Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
Good news for Labor Day weekend travelers: Gas prices are dropping
Alexei Popyrin knocks out defending champ Novak Djokovic in US Open third round
Artem Chigvintsev Says Nikki Garcia Threw Shoes at Him in 911 Call Made Before Arrest
Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
Police use Taser to subdue man who stormed media area of Trump rally in Pennsylvania
1 officer dead, 2 officers injured in Dallas shooting; suspect dead, police say
Women’s college in Virginia bars transgender students based on founder’s will from 1900