KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A man has been charged with stabbing a Kansas City police officer while suffering what appeared to be a mental health crisis.
Twenty-four-year-old Austin Lewis, of Independence, was charged Thursday with first-degree assault and armed criminal action. His bond is set at $200,000 cash. No attorney is listed for him in online court records.
A police detective wrote in the probable cause statement that the stabbing happened Wednesday after the officer was dispatched on a medical call in downtown Kansas City and saw Lewis huffing an unknown substance. The officer was waiting with Lewis for an ambulance, when Lewis reached into a pant pocket, pulled out a kitchen knife and stabbed the officer in the chest, the statement said.
The officer then held the man at gunpoint until more officers arrived, and the injured officer was taken to a hospital for treatment. The officer is recovering.
Lewis told police that he was suicidal and trying to kill himself by huffing when he was approached by the officer. He said he heard voices, got scared and felt cornered by the officer and stabbed him.
Police said the incident did not appear to be related to protests being held in Kansas City.