A Florida sheriff's deputy fatally shot a woman who authorities say threatened him with a knife.
A Polk County Sheriff's Office statement said 53-year-old Miriam Ann Savino called 911 requesting help Saturday afternoon for “a matter of life or death.''
Sheriff's spokeswoman Donna Wood said Deputy David Lockard found no medical emergency when he arrived at Savino's Lake Wales home.
The Ledger reports Sheriff Grady Judd told reporters that Savino approached Lockard with a butcher knife and ignored his commands to drop it.
Grady said Lockard then shot Savino, who was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The sheriff's office placed Lockard on administrative leave. Savino was white. Wood said Lockard also is white.
Savino had been jailed in Polk County five times since 2004 for battery and other charges.
