Deputies fatally shot a woman Wednesday after she ignored commands and advanced towards them with a knife, according to Orange County Sheriff John Mina.
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The deputies had responded around 1 p.m. to a home on the 8200 block of Tivoli Drive near the Dr. Phillips neighborhood to reports of a woman screaming incoherently in another language, Mina said at a news conference a few hours after the incident.
When deputies arrived and knocked on the home’s front door, the woman exited while holding a large knife and moved towards them. The deputies retreated towards the street and repeatedly ordered her to drop the knife, but she refused and continued towards them, shouting “I’ll kill you” in English, Mina said.
Three deputies opened fire and shot the woman. They rendered first aid until she was transported to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
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The woman, who was in her fifties, was not identified as her next of kin had not been notified yet. Mina said the woman had been previously held outside of Orange County under the provisions of the Baker Act, which allows law enforcement to involuntarily commit people to a mental health facility for up to 72 hours.
It did not appear there was anyone else in the home at the time of the incident.
As per standard procedure, the three deputies involved were placed on temporary paid administrative leave pending an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which will send its review to the Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office. The sheriff’s office will release body camera footage from the incident within 30 days.
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