A stabbing suspect shot by police on Wednesday in San Francisco's Bayview District died from his wounds, police Chief Greg Suhr said.
Officers used non-lethal weapons before firing their guns, Suhr said at a press conference Wednesday night.
The incident was initially reported by San Francisco Municipal Railway officials at 4:50 p.m. as police activity near Third Street and Paul Avenue. The suspect, a man in his 20s whose name has not yet been released, was involved in a stabbing nearby a few minutes before officers arrived, according to police.
A video posted to the social media site Instagram, apparently shot by a bystander aboard a Muni vehicle, appears to show the moments just before the man was shot.
In it, a limping man is surrounded by police officers on a sidewalk . Suhr said the video confirmed the suspect "does have the knife in his hand and he does move toward officers."
The video shows a man bent over and holding his left hip with his left hand as he is surrounded by at least six police officers with their guns drawn. He is seen standing up and gesturing to police officers before starting to wobble away from some officers. A woman standing in front of the person recording the video can be heard shouting "Just drop it! Just drop it, please!"
The man continues walking away as one officer steps in front of him, walking backward while pointing his gun at him. Seconds later the camera turns away as what sounds like at least 15 gunshots are fired amid the screams of bystanders.
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Suhr said there is more to the incident that was not caught on camera.
The chief said the suspect was holding what he described as a large kitchen knife. Suhr said five officers fired their guns when the man started to leave the area.
"He had already demonstrated, by committing a felony aggravated assault, that he was a danger to others," Suhr said, "so, he could not be allowed to move away from the scene."
The deadly shooting is being investigated by the police department and the district attorney’s office. Per policy, the officers involved will be put on paid administrative leave during the investigation.
Wednesday's shooting comes as the San Francisco Police Commission was considering policies for body-worn cameras by the Police Department's officers. The cameras, not yet worn by officers, are slated to be deployed in San Francisco sometime in 2016.
The 2011 shooting death of Kenneth Harding by police in the city's troubled Bayview District sparked protests after the community reacted with anger to a video that showed the 19-year-old bleeding helplessly in the middle of a street while police stood around him with guns drawn and a crowd gathered.
Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.
