MESA, AZ — A man was shot and killed by police Monday morning after he charged officers with a large metal tool, according to officials.
The incident occurred near Brown Road and Val Vista Drive around 7:30 a.m. when Mesa police officials received a report of a man jumping the wall into a woman's backyard.
When authorities made contact with the man, "they were actually sitting up in the front yard when the suspect exited the backyard with a large metal tool in his hand and was actually charging at the officers," Sgt. Chuck Trapani with the Mesa Police Department said.
Officers used a stungun and beanbag shotgun to attempt to stop the man, identified by police as 49-year-old James Schild, but he continued charging at officers and two officers fired their weapons.
"As they retreated, [Schild] again charged at them with that large metal object, leaving them no other choice but to discharge their duty weapons," said Sgt. Trapani.
Schild was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police say Schild lives in the area but was not known to the woman who called the police for help.
Neighbors told ABC15 they were in disbelief to hear what had happened.
"It's terrible. This neighborhood is amazing. It's very quiet, a lot of elderly people live here, and we're all just kind of family, so it's kind of sad situation," said Lisa Sorensen.
No officers were hurt during the incident.
This is the first police shooting in the Valley of 2022. In 2021, there were 52 media-reported police shootings in the Valley.
