NORTH RIVERSIDE, Ill. (WLS) — A knife-wielding man was fatally shot by police Sunday afternoon in the west suburbs.
The police-involved shooting happened around 3:47 p.m. in the 8500 block of Cermak Road in North Riverside, officials said.
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According to police officials in North Riverside, officers were responding to a disturbance call when they encountered a man armed with two knives. In an attempt to defend another individual, an officer discharged their weapon at the armed man.
Following the incident, the man received immediate medical attention from the officers on the scene. He was then transported to Loyola Medical Center, located in close proximity, where he succumbed to the injuries sustained during the altercation.
The deceased individual has been identified by his family as 31-year-old Jose Evans from Crest Hill. According to reports from ABC7, family members stated that Evans was undergoing a mental health crisis at the time of the encounter with law enforcement.
The family said Evans was in North Riverside visiting his girlfriend. ABC7 talked to his mom, Donna Evans, and cousins outside of the hospital where he died.
The family says they understand he was armed with knives… but they’re struggling to understand why officers couldn’t use other methods to diffuse the situation.
“I want to know what happened… my son is mentally ill and he got shot,” Donna Evans said. “I came to the hospital and they won’t even let me see him.”
The family is searching for answers and hoping there’s additional video evidence of the incident.
“There’s bean bags there’s other stuff to hit at them to get them down,” a cousin, Jesus Sanchez, said. “These officers are supposed to be trained. They should be able to shoot someone in the leg where they’re not killing the person.”
Police said it was a domestic incident and there is no threat to the public. No officers were hurt.
“The North Riverside Police Department is fully cooperating with the State Police Public Integrity Task Force, which is conducting a comprehensive investigation into the incident,” police said in a news release.
No further information was immediately available.
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