Chicago police shot and killed a man who lunged at them with two knives inside a Roseland neighborhood home Tuesday night, minutes after the same man stabbed their sergeant in the face, officials said.
The sergeant, a 19-year veteran of the department, was listed in serious condition at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn early Wednesday, according to authorities. His injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.
Police officials said the officers were called to the home in the 200 block of East 107th Street after a 911 call placed from the residence ended abruptly while a woman was reporting a knife-wielding man.
Fraternal Order of Police spokesman Pat Camden said the sergeant and officers got no answer when they rang a doorbell about 10 p.m. They forced their way in when they heard a woman's scream coming from inside.
The 46-year-old sergeant, who was first to enter, was stabbed in the face multiple times by the knife-wielding man, Camden said.
When the officers came to his aid, the attacker barricaded himself in the home, locking an iron screen door shut as they pulled him to safety, Camden said.
Briefly locked out, the officers broke several windows to ventilate the home after smelling gas and then forced their way back in the home a second time, Camden said.
They found the man, believed to be in his 40s, hiding in a basement closet with two knives, police said.
After refusing orders to drop the knives, the man apparently lunged at the officers, Camden said. They drew their weapons and fired in self-defense, killing the man, police said.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s office confirmed the man died at the scene, but could not provide further details early Wednesday.
"They're out there putting their lives on the line every night, and they basically saved this woman's life in addition to neighbors if the guy was intending to blow up the house," Camden said of the officers.
The sergeant was originally taken to Roseland Community Hospital but was later transferred to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was in serious condition with multiple stab wounds to the face, Camden said.
The attacker’s mother was also taken to Roseland Community Hospital to be treated for multiple cuts, although it was not immediately clear whether they were caused by the knife or by broken glass, Camden said.
The Independent Police Review Authority and Area South detectives launched an investigation.
