'A tragic situation': Fayetteville police kill armed woman having mental 'crisis'

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- Fayetteville police officers shot and killed an armed woman apparently having a mental crisis on Friday night after responding to a reported home break-in.

It happened just before 9:45 p.m. at a home along the 2300 block of Colgate Drive.

Assistant Police Chief James Nolette said early Saturday morning that the call started when police were told four men were attempting to break into the home.

"Once on scene, the officers made contact with the occupants of the residents, a mother, a daughter, a grandmother and a grandfather," Nolette said.

There was no evidence of a break-in, Nolette said.

While talking to the mother, there were "some inconsistencies with what was going on," Nolette said. He added that she "came off as if she were having a crisis."

The woman produced a handgun and began threatening to harm herself, Nolette said.

Officers tried for about an hour to deescalate the situation and get her to put the gun down.

"She finally agreed to some assistance offered through Cape Fear Valley," Nolette said. We had EMS and an ambulance respond to the residence."

Nolette noted that during the negotiations, the grandmother and the young daughter, as well as officers, were all in harm's way. Officers "relentlessly" tried to "get this woman to put the weapon down."

After about an hour, officers tried to wrest the weapon away but the struggle went to the ground, and an officer then fired their service weapon, striking the woman.

"This is a tragic situation," Nolette said. "It escalated very quickly."

Two officers were on the scene when the situation turned deadly.

Nolette said there is body camera footage that will be reviewed.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation has been called in to conduct the investigation as is standard when a law officer discharges a weapon.

The officer has been placed on administrative duty, pending the outcome of the investigation, as is also standard procedure. The Fayetteville Police Department's Internal Affairs Unit is also investigating the incident.