Santa Maria police say they used non-lethal weapons to subdue a man who threatened them and repeatedly asked officers to shoot him on Monday afternoon.
The incident began at about 2:45 p.m. in the 1700 block of North Lynne Drive, where officers were called to investigate a disturbance, said Lt. Dan Cohen.
“The male suspect, Juan Angel Salinas Pena, was trying to break into the home of a family member,” Cohen said. “When officers went to contact Pena, he armed himself with a knife and a large rock. Pena threatened officers and repeatedly asked for the officers to shoot him, the phenomenon known as ‘suicide by cop.’”
Officers tracked Pena to a nearby backyard, Cohen said, and evacuated residences in the area.
Police negotiators then were called in to talk to Pena during a stand-off that lasted more than two hours, Cohen said.
Eventually, while still holding the knife, Pena tried to jump a fence into another yard. At that point, Cohen said, officers fired foam projectiles at him, and Pena dropped the knife and was taken into custody.
He was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail on suspicion of brandishing a weapon at a peace officer, resisting arrest by use of force or threats, and trespassing.
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
