Chicago police shot and killed an aggressive panhandler Thursday outside of the ABC Studios on State and Randolph in the Loop.
Cops initially used pepper-spray to subdue the man, a homeless gentleman believed to be in his 50s. The man evaded cops momentarily and grabbed hold of a nearby elderly man and put a butcher's knife to his throat, Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weiss said at a news conference.
"The policeman shouted 'Stop, stop,' but he didn't and that's when [the officer] shot him," Bobby Polk, 20, told the Chicago Breaking News Center.
A spokeswoman for the Cook County medical examiner's office said a man in his 50s was taken from the scene and was pronounced dead at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
A Chicago police officer was injured in the melee when he was hit by friendly fire.
The bullets deflected off the officer's bullet proof vest, Fire Department officials said. The cop went to the hospital but will be OK, officials said.
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