Deputy kills mentally ill man in scuffle
A man with a history of mental problems and drug addiction was shot and killed in a confrontation with sheriff’s deputies Tuesday morning, according to authorities and the man’s family.
About 10:50 am, two Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies knocked at the door of Allen H. Hunter, 45, ready to arrest Hunter on a felony charge of violating his probation.
…Hunter seized on deputy’s baton and used it to bludgeon him. A second deputy shot Hunter with a stun gun but the jolt did not stop him. The first deputy recovered, drew his gun and shot Hunter dead outside the house at 191 Hibiscus Tree Drive, north of Boynton Beach…The deputy who fired was treated for minor injuries.
As investigators worked at the house Tuesday afternoon, Hunter’s younger brother, Christopher, stood to one side, trying to make sense of what had happened.
“All the confrontations he had with the police,” said Christopher Hunter, 37. “They knew he was sick. They knew he was bipolar.”
Christopher Hunter described his brother as a “very intelligent” man who struggled with mental illness. He said Allen Hunter eventually turned to drugs and was capable of cocaine binges that lasted three days.
–The Palm Beach Post, March 24, 2010
It is too early to pass judgment here, on the deputies or Allen Hunter. A man with bipolar disorder in the throes of mania and strung out on cocaine has super-natural strength and super stupid judgment. Imagine how disorientating it was for the cops? A person who knows you have a gun, grabs your baton and starts beating you with it, all within sight of your partner — who also has a gun.
I mean, come on, what kind of person would do that in the face of that kind of odds — two against one — and that kind of fire power? Answer: A person with bipolar in the throes of a manic episode who is wigged out on cocaine. What the article does not tell us is whether the officers had completed the department’s Crisis Intervention Training — a program designed to teach law enforcement how to handle the mentally ill.
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Adam
10:06 am on
March 28th, 2010“I want to know because here in Palm Beach county this has happened before, so I have a lot of questions.”
Thanks for asking those questions Christine. You’re doing a great job of advocating on behalf of the needs of people with mental illness.
Cora
1:38 pm on
March 29th, 2010You know what…many people who snort mountains of cocaine with a co-morbid mental illness do not do these things. Just because you are mentally ill/addicted to drugs doesn’t mean you are above the law. You can’t just go ahead and engage in ILLEGAL consumption of a controlled substance and not think about or accept the consequences. Was this guy off his meds? Like you said it may be pre-mature to make a judgment but put yourself in the cops shoes…and who knows maybe he was suicidal and wanted to commit suicide by cop.
Cora:
You are right. There are – and should be – consequences for Allen’s behavior. And there were. He also may have wanted to commit suicide. I have to wonder how many more times this has to happen before law enforcement makes mental health crisis training mandatory for everyone.
Brian
2:44 pm on
March 31st, 2010This individual attacked a police officer. If you attack a cop, they can use any reasonable means to protect themselves or others. Based on this description of the confrontation, it sounds like the officers responded appropriately. If I attacked a police officer, I would expect to be subdued or killed regardless of my mental state. I have been highly paranoid during a manic episode but I still knew attacking other people, whether they’re armed police officers or not, could get me killed. No amount of Crisis Intervention Training will prepare you for a physical attack. I have also had to handle people when they are under the influence of cocaine. It’s not easy, even when they aren’t being particularly violent. You can reason with a person but you cannot reason with the drugs or alcohol in their system. Crisis Intervention Training sounds like a good idea. Greater knowledge about handling people with mental illness should be part of on-going training for all police departments. That being said, this unfortunate event is no reason to suggest a witch hunt in this department. The actions of anyone, regardless of mental state, dictate the response of the officers. You have to be “out of your mind” in the first place to attack an armed person.
holmegm
2:11 pm on
April 1st, 2010What would you have suggested they do, given the way it played out?
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