Fairfax County police have released body camera footage of a shooting in Reston, Virginia, last month that left a woman dead after she apparently slashed an officer in the face with a knife.
On the morning of Sept. 16, the officer reported to the woman’s apartment complex on Sunrise Valley Drive in Reston after a health care professional asked police to conduct a welfare check on her — as she was said to be in an “agitated state.”
WTOP’s Dick Uliano reported that the video shows the violent encounter between the officer and 33-year-old Sydney Wilson.
The body camera video shows the officer knocking at her apartment door. The woman opens it and quickly closes the door, Uliano reported.
The second time the officer knocks, Wilson opens the door and immediately begins slashing at the officer with a knife, striking him in the head.
He orders her to stop, but she continues walking toward him, backing him up to the end of a short, dead-end hallway, where the officer eventually opened fire. Wilson can be seen charging at the officer with the knife before he fires three shots to stop the attack.
Responding emergency personnel attempted to render aid on Wilson. She was transported to a hospital where she later died.
The police officer, later identified by Fairfax Police Chief Kevin Davis as Peter Liu, is a 14-year veteran who suffered a non-life-threatening head wound. Uliano said police have a criminal investigation into the use of force, and there’s also an investigation underway by the Internal Affairs Bureau.
Liu is currently placed on restricted duty. Davis said the officer did an exceptional job of trying to de-escalate the situation before he was forced to open fire.
You can see the body camera video below. Warning: The following video contains graphic imagery that may be unsuitable for certain audiences.
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