At about 7 PM last night a stabbing attack took place in Plymouth. Consequently, the stabbing suspect, a 50 year old man named Herman Smith, barricaded himself in a local house. There was also a 7 year old boy in that house.
At the moment, it is unclear what the relationship was between Smith, his alleged victim, the boy and the location he chose to hole up at. But whatever it is, once the situation had developed the way it did the first responders trying to sort out the situation had a major problem on their hands. They had someone who had just demonstrated his willingness to take a life in the same house with a child. In situations of this sort it is very hard to tell what a suspect may do hence there is little choice for the law enforcement and other first responders have little choice but to consider worst possible scenarios. And that makes the presence of a possible hostage - in this case, a child - makes it very challenging.
In this case, the situation was resolved peacefully. The SWAT team managed to evacuate the boy through a second floor window of the house. Following that, the officers entered the house and arrested Smith without incident.
We hear a lot every time the police end up killing or injuring someone, especially when it is a result of police incompetence and abuse. That criticism is certainly proper and necessary. But it is also necessary to acknowledge the positive contribution law enforcement and other first responders make, sometimes in very challenging situations like the one that had played out in Plymouth. The only person who was injured was the stabbing victim, and they are expected to survive. And that is a very fortunate outcome, in comparison to other scenarios that may have played out.
References
LOCAL NEWS 7-year-old boy rescued through window during standoff with Plymouth stabbing suspect
CBSBosto.com staff, 23 October 2022