Police shoot knife-wielding man in Lynn

LYNN, Mass. -- A Lynn police officer shot a man who allegedly came at him with several knives and a gun.

According to the Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett's office, police received a call from a 25-year-old man who threatened to kill himself.

Two officers pulled up and saw a man carrying a butcher knife and two carving knives. The man walked up the driver’s side of the patrol car, forcing both officers to get out on the passenger’s side, according to the district attorney’s office.

Maryann Held and her daughter live on Lynnwood Street. They said they heard a loud argument around 1 a.m.

“All we heard was yelling, yelling, yelling,” Held said.

Police said the man didn’t follow their orders and reached for a gun, prompting officers to open fire.

“All sudden I heard gunshots and I’m closing my ears and I’m ducking,” said neighbor Megan Rich. “I was terrified.”

The man was shot once. He was rushed to the hospital and is expected to survive.

No officers were injured in the incident.

Police did not say how many shots were fired. The officers involved in the shooting have been placed on paid administrative leave – standard procedure for anyone in an officer-involved shooting.

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