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A man called 911 at about 1:14 a.m. on July 28, 2024, reporting that his sister was having a mental health crisis and asking that she be taken to Valley Hospital in Paramus. The dispatcher told him an ambulance and police officer would be sent, and said officers had to respond to mental health calls for the safety of ambulance personnel.

At about 1:19 a.m., the same caller called back and asked to cancel the call. The dispatcher said mental health calls could not be cancelled. When asked why he wanted to cancel, the caller said his sister had a knife. He said she was in a bedroom, was "just holding it," and described it as a "foldable" knife. The Fort Lee Police Department upgraded the seriousness of the call.

Officer Tony Pickens, Jr. was the first of multiple Fort Lee officers to arrive at The Pinnacle apartment complex on Main Street at about 1:25 a.m. He spoke with the caller in the hallway, opened the apartment door, and saw Victoria G. Lee and her mother, who was holding a small barking dog. Both women told him not to come in. Ms. Lee reached over her mother, closed the door on him, and the door was locked.

Officers knocked and asked the women to open the door. A supervisory officer determined they needed to make immediate entry. Officer Pickens warned through the door that he would have to break it down. Ms. Lee replied, "Go ahead, I'll stab you in the fucking neck." She also said, "Shoot me if you want to." The supervisory officer said they did not want to shoot her and wanted to talk with her.

At about 1:28 a.m., Officer Pickens forced the door open. Ms. Lee was standing about two steps from the door, holding a five-gallon water bottle in her right hand and an object in her left hand. Officers yelled, "Drop the knife!" Her mother was holding onto Ms. Lee's left hand, but Ms. Lee broke free and took two steps toward the officers in the hallway. As she was about to cross the doorway threshold, Officer Pickens fired one shot, striking her in the chest.

Officers provided medical aid. Ms. Lee was taken to Englewood Hospital, where she was pronounced deceased at about 1:58 a.m. A knife was recovered at the scene.

Watch the video of this incident here.