Officer: Police knew homeless man suffered from schizophrenia before he was fatally shot
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Defense attorney Luis Robles, left, talks to former Albuquerque detective Keith Sandy, center, and Albuquerque officer Dominique Perez, right, during a preliminary hearing in Albuquerque, N.M. on Monday, Aug. 17, 2015. A judge is listening to testimony and will decide if Sandy and Perez should stand trial for the fatal shooting of a homeless man in 2014. (AP Photo/Russell Contreras) (The Associated Press)
An Albuquerque SWAT sergeant says police were aware that a homeless man suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and had previously attacked an officer before he was fatally shot during a standoff.
Sgt. James Fox said Monday that officers who arrived to the scene knew basic information about James Boyd when police received reports about the 38-year-old camping illegally in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains.
Fox made his comments during a preliminary hearing for Officer Dominique Perez and former Detective Keith Sandy, who are facing murder charges for Boyd's death.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A judge is listening to testimony this week and will decide if the officers should stand trial.
Fox says police determined the standoff was a SWAT situation because the knife-wielding Boyd was on higher ground and put officers in danger.