A 27-year-old armed man who was mentally challenged was shot and killed by Westland police over the weekend during a confrontation, Fox 2 reports.
Police went to a home where a man with a hunting knife reportedly threatened to kill people on Saturday night, Dave Spencer of Fox 2 reports. He says the man,Troy Hart, was born with Kallmann syndrome, a development disorder that affects maturity levels.
Fox 2 His mother, Cheryl Hart says Troy was like an 8-year-old trapped in an adult's body.
"With his impairment, he did not have a filter so he would just blurt things out, inappropriate things," Hart told Fox 2.
The station reports that Troy grabbed his hunting knife and stormed out of the house with just pajama pants.
The mother called 911 and told police her handicapped son was out in his pajamas. She wanted police to bring him home or take him for a psychiatric evaluation.
Fox 2 reports that witness Anthony Like claims "when they (police) saw the knife, they told him to put it down but they continued to move forward even though they saw the knife. That's what led to them shooting him, when he put it up."
Harts' family plans on hiring an attorney but also hopes a bigger change will come from this incident, Fox 2 reports. They say police have a problem dealing with mentally challenged people.
