PORT JERVIS – A 45-year-old Port Jervis man was shot and killed by Port Jervis City Police Thursday night after he charged at them while armed with a knife. The officers ordered him to drop the weapon, but when he did not, they fired several times. Charles Parker was pronounced dead at Bon Secours Community Hospital.
The man’s sister, Tanya Decker, said the police should have tased him instead of opening fire.
She said her brother lived with their elderly mother at 67 Railroad Avenue. She called the police at around 9:30 when Parker took a knife to himself.
Decker said when Port Jervis Police arrived, Parker burst outside the house and lunged at them.
She said her brother had psychological and substance abuse problems but said he was off his meds because the facility where he was receiving counseling and medication in Middletown was closed because of the coronavirus.
The matter is under investigation by State and Port Jervis Police and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, who will consult with the state attorney general’s office to determine which agency will ultimately have jurisdiction over the case.
