TRENTON, NJ — A recently released police video shows a Fort Lee, New Jersey, police officer firing a single shot that killed a 25-year-old woman last month, just seconds after police broke down an apartment door and the woman had immediately threatened to stab them.
Five videos and two 911 calls released late last week show how quickly the situation evolved after a call for help for mental health issues. At one point, the woman’s family tried to call the police and only used the emergency number to send an ambulance.
According to a statement from Attorney General Matt Platkin, Fort Lee police officer Tony Pickens Jr. shot Victoria Lee shortly after police broke down the apartment door around 1 a.m. Lee was pronounced dead at the hospital shortly afterward.
The video, which shows the time before the fatal shooting, includes a police officer knocking on Lee’s door and then saying he was going to kick it in.
“Go on. I’ll stab you in the neck,” a woman’s voice can be heard behind the door.
“We don’t want to shoot you. We want to talk to you,” an officer replied.
The officers outside then argued about which of them would use lethal and non-lethal force, and the officer knocking on the door subsequently shoulder-butted her several times.
In the video, the door opens and officers yell at Lee to drop a knife. The video shows Lee holding a large water jug in her right hand, which she swings toward police. The shot was fired three seconds after the door opened, and Lee fell to the ground.
The video also shows a silver-bladed knife being thrown out of the apartment. It is not clear where the knife was or who threw it out.
In one of the 911 recordings released by Platkin’s office, a man can be heard saying he needed help for his sister, who was having a mental health crisis. He said only an ambulance was needed, but the dispatcher said police would be sent to ensure the safety of emergency responders.
The man called back and asked if he could cancel the call to the police, but was told the call could not be canceled. When asked why he wanted to cancel the call, the man said his sister had a knife and described it as a small, collapsible one.
A message was left Monday with an attorney representing Lee’s family and with the police union representing Fort Lee officers.
State law requires Platkin to investigate the death and present the findings to a grand jury, which will decide whether to bring charges against the officer who shot him.
