PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — A knife-wielding man was shot after Port St. Lucie police officers responded to a domestic violence incident Friday afternoon, according to the chief.
The shooting occurred in the Spanish Lakes Golf Village at about 3:30 p.m. after two officers responded to a home on Montilla Way.
WATCH: Police shoot man in Port St. Lucie after he 'charged them' with knife, chief says
Police identified the suspect as 35-year-old Alexander Taylor. He sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and was taken to HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
"There were statements about a suicide by cop potential as the officers were arriving," Chief Leo Niemczyk said during an evening news conference. "They exited their vehicles. As they walked around the corner, they were confronted with an adult male charging them with a knife."
The chief said the officers asked Taylor to drop a large butcher knife that he had in his possession, but he continued to charge at them, prompting police to shoot him in the street.
"(The officers) started approaching the house carefully, but the subject exited the house and charged them," Niemczyk said. "These officers didn't have time to plan anything less lethal whatsoever. They just reacted with what they had to do at the time."
The chief said the two officers involved in the incident were not hurt but were taken to the hospital as standard procedure.
The victim, a family member of Taylor's, told 911 dispatchers he'd been battered by the suspect. The victim also told investigators that Taylor had a history of mental health issues.
WPTV reporter Cassandra Garcia spoke with a neighbor, who said he "heard two shots."
"Went to the door, then I looked out and see, one, two, three, four, five, more than eight police cars," said Jerry Lopez.
Lopez added that this neighborhood is "peaceful, in general. This doesn't happen every day."
Niemczyk said the Florida Department of Law Enforcement was contacted, and they have taken over the investigation.
Both of the officers, who have been with the Port St. Lucie Police Department for about three years, will be placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure.
Niemczyk said a preliminary review of facts showed this was a justified shooting.
"You need a very significant amount of space to use any alternative other than lethal force in that situation," he said.
