Homeless Schizo stabs officer in the neck eventually killing him and then gets shot by a civilian,New Mexico,USA 11th Feb,2024[Multiple POV]

A homeless man with a history of mental illness and criminal convictions killed a New Mexico cop — seconds before he was gunned down by a witness, police said Tuesday.

Las Cruces Officer Jonah Hernandez, 35, was responding to a trespassing call at a business around 5 p.m. Sunday when he was pounced on by repeat offender Armando Silva.

When he arrived, Armando Silva immediately attacked him with a large kitchen knife,” Police Chief Jeremy Story said at a press conference.

“For no reason whatsoever, Silva killed Officer Hernandez.”

Silva, 29, then turned his ire on a bystander who had grabbed a firearm from their car after witnessing the “unprovoked attack,” Story said.

The witness fired at least one gunshot, killing Silva.

They then used Hernandez's radio to call for help. The cop was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Hernandez's death marks the first of an officer in the line of duty for the Las Cruces Police Department.

The homeless man's criminal history included a 2015 conviction for kidnapping and aggravated battery with great bodily harm against a household member, which resulted in a prison sentence. Silva violated his probation multiple times and was sent back to prison in the following years, Story said.

Hernandez was a two-year veteran of the Las Cruces police force, having graduated from the academy in June 2022 with the department's largest graduating class.

Police do not plan to recommend charges against the witness, who has not been identified, for gunning down Silva.

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I'm incredibly surprised the police released this of their own accord. It doesn't even look like it was at the behest of a FOI request.

This is why becoming complacent is a death sentence for so many American LEOs. Just look at how casually the police officer closes the gap with the anti-social vagrant. Quite literally every step he took towards the suspect lowered his chances of survival exponentially, up until he had next to zero chance of unholstering his weapon and putting shots down. It's been proven that the minimum distance you need to draw a holstered firearm and put effective shots down range against somebody charging you with a bladed instrument is roughly 17-20 feet.

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It sadly was a very unexperienced officer, I read somewhere that he had less than 2 years of service while also being very young <25. I guess you just don't have the experience at that time/age to perceive all the details. Very sad incident

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He was 35

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