Anaheim police shoot, kill stabbing suspect

Officers responding to a report of a stabbing at an Anaheim laundromat on Sunday evening shot and killed a female suspect armed with knives just hours after police attempted to check in on her at her family’s request, according to a police statement. 

Monique Jenee Deckard, 43, reportedly stabbed a female patron at a laundromat about a mile from Disneyland. The woman’s injuries were not considered life-threatening, police said.

Police were called to the scene about 5:30 p.m. Deckard had already fled the scene, but witnesses who knew her directed officers to her apartment, according to police.

Officers attempted to speak with Deckard through her closed apartment door, but after at first refusing to speak with them, she came out armed with two knives and charged them. The officers opened fire, striking Deckard, who was transported to a local hospital and pronounced dead shortly after arrival, according to police.

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Family members had called police two hours earlier to check on Deckard after friends said she was trying to find or buy a firearm, police said. Officers could not locate her at the time.

Police said the family was aware Deckard had a history of mental instability.

Several officers were equipped with body cameras, and the footage is being provided to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, police said, noting that this was the first officer-involved shooting in Anaheim this year.