Sheriff deputies fatally shoot mental health patient wielding scissors at Florida hospital (ncd)

VERO BEACH, Fla. — A Florida man was fatally shot inside Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital on Saturday night after he attempted to stab deputies with scissors, according to local authorities.

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Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers confirmed to WPTV that several deputies were in the hallway of the medical facility’s emergency department just before 10:30 p.m. when a man rose up from a hospital bed in the hallway, grabbed scissors and ran down the hall.

The Sheriff’s Office has not publicly identified the patient or the deputies involved in the shooting but did confirm that the deputies have been placed on paid administrative leave pending an investigation, WPBF reported.

“He actually runs through the middle of the emergency room and ultimately comes out right where the deputies were standing,” Flowers told reporters during a Sunday afternoon news conference.

“As (deputies) close in on him, he turns, raises the scissors up above his head. At that point, our deputies begin to retreat back. Again, a small narrow hallway, gurneys, all kinds of stuff in there. They draw their weapons and two of the deputies fire, shooting and killing this man,” the sheriff added, noting that the deputy closest to the suspect at the time of the shooting thought that the man had raised a knife.

According to WPTV, the 29-year-old suspect was brought to the hospital Friday by his family and was being held under Florida’s Baker Act, which enables families and loved ones to provide emergency mental health services and temporary detention for people who are impaired by their mental illness and unable to determine their need for treatment.

Flowers, who noted that only five seconds elapsed between the time the man grabbed the scissors and when deputies fired, said that the suspect had previously attempted suicide and showed signs of self-harm, the TV station reported.

“It’s a terrible tragedy, not just in our county, but in our country. We’re facing a mental health crisis,” Flowers said.

“The fact that we were up there taking people in for suicidal incidents for Baker Acts, that they had multiple Baker Act patients awaiting transportation to a facility because there’s not enough beds, and the fact that this gentleman had been waiting there for a day and a half shows what kind of mental health crisis we’re in right now.”

The man’s transfer to another facility had been denied at the time of the shooting, WPBF reported.

According to the TV station, the sheriff’s office released bodycam video from one of the deputies involved and has subpoenaed video from the hospital’s camera, which Flowers said provides a clearer view of what happened.

The hospital issued the following statement regarding the shooting:

“On Saturday, March 26, 2022, an incident occurred at the Indian River Hospital Emergency Department. While at our facility, a patient behaved in a threatening manner which resulted in the use of deadly force by deputies who were already on site. This incident is under investigation, and we are cooperating with the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office.”

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