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Notes -
Unsure of the provenance but here's an angle that shows control of the kitchen knife at the time of or right after the taser. The officer who had partial control of the suspect's hand with the knife is the one who shoots him. Plausibly, the taser rips zapzapzap, and officer loses his hold on the knife as suspect falls. Only one officer has hands on the suspect as he hits the ground and previous knife restrainer now-shooter cop draws and fires in, seemingly, one motion. Could be he couldn't go back in on the knife hand safely at that point-- the remaining officer on the camera side looks like he's about to try as shots are fired in your video. Could be he had the best intention to prepare for escalation to lethal force since he lost control of the weapon and it just so happened that knife looked stabbier as he decided to draw. Could be he was frustrated, tired, and made a bad decision.
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