Woman Killed By Police At Fort Lee High-Rise, AG Says

Police shot and killed a woman at a Fort Lee apartment building after a 9-1-1 caller reported she had been suffering a mental health crisis overnight, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office said in a press release.

Officers were called to "The Pinnacle" apartments on Main Street around 1:25 a.m. Sunday, July 28, after the woman's brother called 9-1-1 saying she was having a mental health crisis and needed to go to the hospital, AG Matthew Paltkin said.

The caller also said that his sister was holding a knife.

A responding officer spoke to the 9-1-1 caller in the hallway of the building before opening the door to the apartment. Once inside, he saw two females: One who appeared to be the caller's sister, Platkin said.

The females told the officer not to come in and shut the door. The officer stood outside knocking on the door asking the females to open the door as additional officers arrived, Platkin said.

After the occupants did not comply, officers breached the door. As the 9-1-1 caller's sister approached the officers in the hallway, one officer fired a single shot, striking the woman in the chest. Officers provided immediate medical aid. The female who was shot was transported to Englewood Hospital, and pronounced dead at approximately 1:58 a.m. A knife was recovered at the scene.

The Attorney General's Office is investigating.