BUFFALO, N.Y. — Newly released body camera footage shows the moment a Buffalo man was shot and killed by Cheektowaga police officers after lunging at them with a knife during an attempted arrest in August.
The video, released Thursday by the New York Attorney General’s Office, is part of an ongoing investigation into the death of 60-year-old Hugh Davis Jr. The footage shows officers knocking on Davis’s apartment door on Sanders Road when the door suddenly gives way. Moments later, Davis bursts through the opening with a large knife, prompting officers to open fire.
Police said they had been searching for Davis since August 11, when he allegedly assaulted a hotel employee at the Fairfield Inn on Genesee Street in Cheektowaga. Officers found the worker unconscious after a 911 call about a violent guest who had damaged property and fled before police arrived.
After identifying Davis as the suspect, officers obtained arrest warrants for assault, criminal mischief, and menacing. When they tracked him to his Buffalo apartment two days later, the confrontation turned deadly.
According to investigators, Davis lunged at officers before one fired three shots. Police immediately called for medical help and performed CPR, but Davis was pronounced dead at the scene. No officers were hurt.
The officers involved have been placed on paid administrative leave, which is standard protocol following shootings involving police.