DAVENPORT, Fla. — Three Polk County Sheriff's Office deputies shot a man who the agency says stabbed one of their own while responding to a 911 call, according to a news release.
Law enforcement responded around 2:45 p.m. Sunday to the Providence subdivision on a call from an elderly woman who claimed her adult son, identified as 47-year-old Arthur Martin, was trying to kill her.
The woman said she was sleeping in the living room when she was awakened by him trying to smother her by holding a pillow to her face, the sheriff's office said. She eventually was able to get away and call 911, later saying she had no idea why he tried to kill her and they hadn't gotten into any fights recently.
Deputies who responded to the home called out to Martin, who was learned to be held up in an upstairs bathroom. Refusing commands to come out with his hands up and holding the door shut, deputies forced the door open.
The sheriff's office says Martin then charged at the deputies with a large knife and hit Deputy Sheriff Aurelio Nicolas in the face, stabbing him on the top of his head. Nicolas fired his Taser, which did not work, according to the office.
All three deputies then shot Martin, killing him.
"Here is one more example of how dangerous this job is," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said in a statement. "When deputies respond to family disturbances, they do everything they can to resolve the situation.
"My deputies did not choose to shoot this violent, convicted felon — he forced them to when he charged them with a knife and began attacking."
Martin was released on parole in January 2019 following a 2016 sentence for armed assault with intent to cause serious injury out of New York. The sheriff's office said he, too, had an active injunction in New York that barred him from any contact with an adult woman and two children.
Nicolas was hired as a detention deputy in June 2020 and has since been serving as a deputy sheriff, the agency said. He received stitches for the cut on his head, and his face was bruised from the hit to this face.
Deputy Sheriff Odalys Hurtado and Deputy Sheriff Kyle Pitts also responded with Nicolas. All of the deputies have been placed on pay administrative leave as an investigation continues, which is sheriff's office policy.