Two officers shot and killed a 20-year-old man experiencing a mental health crisis and expressing suicidal thoughts last month after he told officers to kill him multiple times and, after about an hour, ran towards them with a kitchen knife, near his home in Irvine, a critical incident video released Friday shows.
Family members and friends, including his father, who have criticized the Irvine police response, said the man was autistic, which police knew, and that he should not have been shot under the circumstances. They said that mental health officials should have been more actively involved as the incident unfolded.
“Why would they shoot a kid when they had many other. less-lethal available means to deal with this situation?,” said Erich Meltvedt, the young man’s father, who was at the scene in Irvine’s Turtle Rock neighborhood on the afternoon of the July 21 shooting. He said by phone Friday night that, because of the possible emotional impact, he had not been able yet to watch the video that Irvine police released.
In that video, and a 911 audio recording that included body-worn camera footage, from July 21, Daniel Meltvedt tells a dispatcher and officers that he recently stopped taking an antipsychotic medication and wanted to take his life. He was holding a kitchen knife and said many times that he wanted officers to shoot and kill him, body-worn camera footage showed. At one point, his father, Erich Meltvedt tries to intervene.
“Daniel listen up, this is the worst thing you could do,” Erich Meltvedt tells his son before police escort him away.
“He’s not going to do anything guys,” he tells officers.
Erich Meltvedt previously told the Southern California News Group that he then watched as police tried for more than an hour to talk with his son and eventually shot him to death. He said his son, who was autistic and holding a kitchen knife, hadn’t posed a real threat to the officers at the scene.
Body-worn camera footage appeared to show two officers fire eight shots at Daniel Meltvedt before attempting medical aid. Police didn’t specify how many times Daniel Meltvedt was shot. Paramedics then took him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
According to 911 call audio released by police, Daniel Meltvedt told a dispatcher that he was outside his home near Silkwood and Sungate in the Turtle Rock neighborhood with a kitchen knife in his pocket and wanted to take his life. He also requested police come to the home.
When the dispatcher asked Daniel Meltvedt if he planned to hurt anyone when police arrived, he responded “it depends,” but didn’t elaborate further. As police arrived, the dispatcher told Meltvedt to put the knife on the ground in front of him and put his hands up, and he agreed to do so, according to 911 call audio.
Officers, as well as members of the Irvine Community Alternative Response and Engagement Team, which provides medical and mental health resources in nonviolent scenarios, responded after the call came in around 11:45 a.m., police said. A dispatcher advised those responding to the scene that Daniel Meltvedt had autism and that his father was on his way to the home, according to radio traffic.
Officers with the Crisis Negotiation Team took the lead talking with Daniel Meltvedt over the mental health team because he was armed, said Officer Ziggy Azarcon, a spokesperson for the department.
Body-worn camera footage showed police talking to Daniel Meltvedt from a distance, asking him to put his knife down so they could help him.
“Nobody’s in trouble,” an officer tells him. “You called for help. We wanna see what we can do to help you out, all right? But you holding the knife in your hand makes it a little more challenging for us at this time.”
Moments later, Daniel Meltvedt’s father, Erich Meltvedt, walks toward his son, trying to talk with him. Daniel Meltvedt shouts to officers to stop his father, and police escort the father away. In the critical incident video, Sgt. Karie Davies said officers removed Erich Meltvedt from the situation because his son seemed agitated and police wanted to “reduce the intensity of this event.”
A compilation of body-worn camera footage from the hour-long standoff shows an officer telling Daniel Meltvedt that they would talk with his father about getting his medication prescribed again. Daniel Meltvedt tells officers multiple times that they should shoot and kill him, while an officer tells him that no one there wants to hurt him, the footage showed.
At one point, a warning sound goes off when at least one officer draws a taser, and Daniel Meltvedt runs further away. When officers get closer and start talking with Daniel Meltvedt again, an officer tells him the taser was taken out because he was walking toward police while still armed with the knife, according to the body cam footage. Later, when taser warning sounds are heard again, Daniel Meltvedt tells police he’d rather they shoot than tase him.
“I’d rather you shoot me because, if not, all your employees are getting killed,” he says.
While officers spoke with Daniel Meltvedt, other personnel on scene talked about additional measures to take, including using professionals from the ICARE team or deploying less-lethal munitions, including tasers and 40-millimeter sponge projectile launchers, said Davies in the critical incident video.
Body-worn camera footage also showed an officer ask Erich Meltvedt how to calm his son down. He advised them to “tell him exactly what to do.”
Just after 1 p.m., body-worn camera footage showed one officer telling Daniel Meltvedt that police wanted to help him, but he said he didn’t believe them and took several steps with his hands behind his back.
“I’m tired of playing with you. I’m tired of screwing around,” another officer says. “I’ve told you several times, quit playing with my officers. Put the knife down now!”
The officer shouts at Daniel Meltvedt several more times.
“Are those guns?” Daniel Meltvedt asks before running into the street towards officers, still holding the knife.
“Stop or I’m gonna shoot you,” one officer says before two officers fire at Daniel Meltvedt multiple times. Eight gunshots can be heard on the body-worn camera footage.
Police removed the knife and provided initial medical care before paramedics with the Orange County Fire Authority, who were stationed nearby, took him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, Davies said.
Irvine police and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office are investigating the shooting and the officers’ conduct. The investigation could take up to a year, police said.