California police fatally shot a woman after she repeatedly pointed a gun at a 3-year-old boy's head, local authorities said.
The child's grandmother made the distressing call to police the morning of Dec. 10 after the female suspect, now identified as Darvet Brown, entered the family's San Bernardino apartment with a handgun.
Officers arrived to find the suspect on the apartment balcony, where she pointed the gun at an officer who had just met the grandmother outside. Brown then retreated back into the apartment and locked the door with the young child inside, San Bernardino police said.
The grandmother was "hysterical" as she told officers the 35-year-old suspect, who was not related to the family, had already shot the gun in the residence, making it an extremely unsafe situation for the child.
Officers then kicked down the barricaded door to find the suspect standing on a bed in the living room and pointing the gun directly at the child seated below her, as shown in an image from one officer's body camera.
San Bernardino Police Department
Police said the crying boy was "in immediate danger of being shot at that moment," leading officers to fire several rounds at the woman. Though wounded by this, she held the gun, pointing it back at the child when an officer ordered her to drop it. The officer fired once more to "attempt to save the child's life."
After this firing, officers ran and grabbed the boy, who was uninjured. He was then returned to family members outside the apartment.
Brown succumbed to her injuries at the home despite medical aid. Police still don't know why she entered the apartment.
An investigation is ongoing.
