Man with knife dies after police-involved shooting in NE DC

WASHINGTON - D.C. police say they are investigating a fatal police-involved shooting in Northeast.

According to police, the shooting occurred at around 1:53 p.m. Thursday in the 5300 block of Dix Street.

Police say a Sixth District officer fired one shot in self-defense after she was confronted by a man with a large hunting-style knife along with a second-edged weapon.

The man, who has not been identified, was transported to the hospital where he later died.

A source close to the investigation said the female officer was alone on the scene and shot him once in the chest.

The officer involved in the shooting was taken to a gas station nearby and has been meeting with her union representatives, internal affairs and a chaplain.

The officer's chief shop steward was the first to talk to her at the scene. He was unable to describe the specifics of the shooting, but he described what an officer determines in use of force. He also explained how a shooting affects a police officer personally.

"Our objective is to preserve life," said Officer Robert Underwood, chief shop steward for the Sixth District. "We want to use the least amount of force if necessary to win the scene if you will. So we'll start off for talking to the person, giving them commands, loud commands. We'll go hands-on with them all the way up to lethal force if necessary."

Underwood added, ""The big misconception about officers being in shootings, it affects them a great deal. It really does. A lot of times, they carry with them for the rest of their lives. So you have to reinsure the officer they did the right thing. They were in a position where they had to do what they had to do."

This shooting happened nearby another police-involved shooting incident on Clay Terrace back in August. An officer shot a woman after she approached him wielding a knife. She survived the shooting and was charged with felony assault on a police officer, assault with a deadly weapon and arson.