Authorities: Police Taser Man Shouting ‘Shoot Me! Shoot Me!’ As He Approaches Officers With Knife

A local man was arrested after threatening two Pasadena police officers with a knife, authorities reported.

The incident occurred Friday afternoon shortly before 1 p.m. when officers responded to a report of domestic violence and vandalism in the 1300 block of North El Molino Avenue, Pasadena Police Lt. Derek Locklin said.

A woman told officers that her boyfriend had become violent and broken a window at her residence before he fled on foot. The officers arrived to take a report, but the woman was not at the location, Locklin said.

With officers at the location, the suspect returned, holding a knife. He approached the officers with the knife drawn, Locklin said. 

The officers ordered him to drop the knife, but instead he allegedly yelled “shoot me! shoot me!” and continued to approach the officers in a threatening manner,

One officer deployed a taser against the suspect to avoid further escalating the incident, but the taser was ineffective, according to Locklin. The second officer then deployed his taser, which caused the suspect to drop his knife. The officers were able to take him into custody.

Locklin said the suspect, identified as 35-year-old Pablo Rodriguez of Pasadena, was arrested and taken to a local hospital for treatment of the taser puncture wounds. He was then booked into the Pasadena jail on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer.

Locklin described the knife as a 4-inch folding blade.

Rodriguez was being held at the Inmate Reception Center in Los Angeles on $50,000 bond as of Saturday morning, according to online booking records.