Officers Convince Man Suffering ‘Mental Health Crisis’ to Surrender Kitchen Knife

A stand-off between Pasadena police negotiators and a man described to be suffering from a mental health crisis took almost three hours Tuesday before the man finally surrendered a kitchen knife he was using as a weapon.

Pasadena police Lt. Mark Goodman, Watch Commander, said they first received a report about a man who was possibly suicidal in the 100 block of Hurlbut Street near Fair Oaks Avenue at about 11:50 a.m.

When officers arrived on the location, they were confronted by a man who was armed with a large kitchen knife.

“The man was suffering from a mental health crisis and refused to surrender the weapon,” Goodman said.

Goodman said the Pasadena Police Department’s Crisis Negotiation Team was called in to speak with the man.

“After a period of time, he surrendered the knife and was taken into custody without incident,” Goodman said. “He was transferred to a local mental health facility for evaluation and treatment.”

The standoff was concluded by 2:03 p.m.

Goodman said the police department’s HOPE (Homeless Outreach-Psychiatric Evaluation) team was also on standby to assist during the crisis.