Sassie Smith, 31, has spoken out after her husband Takar Smith, 45, was shot dead by Los Angeles police officers on 2 January while he was experiencing a mental health episode. She had gone to a police station to ask for help, but officers entered her apartment and shot him 15 minutes later while he was on his knees in the kitchen holding a knife.
Takar, a father of six who worked at an oil refinery, had a history of schizophrenia. On the day of the incident, he was talking to himself and making nonsensical remarks. His wife walked to a nearby police station for assistance, believing he needed treatment at a facility. Officers printed a restraining order and told her to return home and call the non-emergency line.
In audio of that call, she told the dispatcher he was off his medication and 'not in his right mind'. She warned arriving officers that there was a knife in the kitchen but that he had no other weapon. Body-cam footage shows officers ordering Takar to come out; within a minute, one officer threatened to Taser him. Two officers shot him, and he was handcuffed after collapsing. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Sassie said: 'I never would've gone to the police if I knew that could happen.' Advocates say the case highlights problems with US policing and mental health care, where families seeking help are met with armed officers who use deadly force. Takar had been institutionalised in 2015 but did not consistently take medication.
