BURLINGTON — City police say officers successfully convinced a woman armed with an imitation firearm to drop the weapon outside of the police station Wednesday morning.
The department received multiple 911 calls just before 6 a.m. Wednesday from callers who said a woman with a handgun was walking around near the police station at One North Avenue, the department said.
“Callers reported that the woman was distraught and made comments indicating that she intended to confront police with the firearm and wanted to be shot,” according to a department statement.
A sergeant and four officers contained the scene and let the woman pace holding the handgun, the department said. The woman started to advance toward officers, who had their guns drawn on her, police say.
“The woman discarded the handgun, stated ‘Go ahead and shoot me, I don’t [expletive] care anymore,’ and began to weep,” the department stated. “The woman further stated she intended for officers to shoot her.”
The woman was transported to the University of Vermont Medical Center for an evaluation. The woman, 37, is known to police, the release states.
The department responds to “thousands” of mental health calls each year, Interim Police Chief Jennifer Morrison said.
“The men and women of the Burlington Police Department approach these high stakes situations with the benefit of both tactical and de-escalation training, experience, and a deep desire to keep people safe,” she said. “This morning, they did just that.”
