Man Killed After Stabbing Mom In Winter Haven: Police

WINTER HAVEN, FL —A Winter Haven man was shot and killed by police Wednesday morning, according to officials. Deputies fired after arriving at his mom's house, where he had stabbed his mother in the chest.

The 36-year-old man, Phillip Dibenedetto, was in his apartment at the family's ranch located off of Overlook Drive when officers from the Polk County Sheriff's Office arrived. He repeatedly told officers he was ready to die, and pointed at his chest as he told them to shoot him, said a news release. As authorities spoke to him through a door, Dibenedetto warned them that he had purchased a gun and had been planning for this.

Police said he became extremely agitated and uncooperative. Eventually police tried to subdue him with a Taser, but he did not respond to that. Shortly afterwards, Dibenedetto lunged over a chair, grabbed his gun and fired a shot, barely missing an officer's head. Two officers at the scene returned fire and struck Dibenedetto multiple times, killing him, police said.

Detectives said that Dibenedetto walked to his mom's house early Wednesday morning and asked for coffee, then told her to turn around toward him. When she did, he stabbed her in the chest, though later he told deputies he tried to stab her in the neck.

"This is an unfortunate reminder of just how dangerous this job is, especially when responding to domestic violence calls and calls related to mental illness," Sheriff Grady Judd said. "Our deputies did everything they could to deescalate the situation and bring it to a peaceful end, but they were into a position where they had to protect each other."

The victim was taken to a local hospital, and her current condition is stable.

She told officers that she hasn't had any recent arguments with her son, and does not know why he stabbed her. He had been suffering from mental health issues for about 20 years, but did not take medications, opting instead to self-medicate with marijuana, she reportedly told officers.

Standard protocol for all deputy-involved shootings includes four independent investigations:

• The PCSO Homicide Unit will conduct a death investigation.
• Administrative Investigations will conduct an administrative inquiry.
• The State Attorney's Office will conduct a separate investigation.
• The 10th District Medical Examiner office will investigate the cause and manner of death.

Per agency protocol, the members involved will be on administrative leave with pay during the initial phase of the investigation.