Officers Shoot, Kill Man Armed With Knife In Upper Merion: PD​

UPPER MERION, PA — Police shot and killed a man armed with a knife in Upper Merion early Thursday morning following a failed intervention from crisis support officers, authorities confirmed.

The incident began at around 11:15 p.m. Wednesday night in the Glenn Rose section of Upper Merion.

The Montgomery County Mobile Crisis Unit arrived on the scene to work with the family, police said. They left to marshal additional resources.

Shortly thereafter, at around 12:54 a.m., a woman from that home called police about a man there armed with a knife.

Officers said they were on the scene within minutes, and tried to de-escalate the situation, encouraging the man to put down the knife. However, the man did not cooperate, they said.

"The male subject was argumentative and refused to comply with officer commands, advancing toward the officers at the front door," Upper Merion police said in a statement. "Officers used a less-lethal taser device on the male subject, however there was little to no effect."

When the taser failed, police fired multiple gunshots at the man. They adminstered life-saving measures immediately, they said, but the man died on the scene.

An investigation is ongoing, and is being led by the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, As is procedure for all shootings involving police, the officers involved have been placed on administrative leave while the investigation continues.