‘Kill me or I am going to kill you’
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Valo
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Veteran officers subdue man wielding 10-inch knife
Responding to a disorderly persons call on
Sept. 29, 2014 turned life-threatening for Officers
Carl Christie and Johnny Washington, who subdued a knife-brandishing perpetrator and safeguarded residents, but at personal cost.
“I was dispatched to a call of a guy stalking a girl,” recalled Washington, an 18-year veteran. “As I was leaving the scene … because (the
suspect) wasn’t there, I looked to my left and saw him standing in front
of the building. I told her not to answer. She answered the door anyway.
“I got out of my car to question the subject,” he continued. “(The
suspect) turned around and had this look in his eye like he was going
to do something to the victim, so I grabbed him, and as I was grabbing
him, Carl (Christie) pulls up.”
“I went to help Johnny,” Christie recalled. “I jumped right in and
started fighting the guy. I didn’t hesitate. That’s instinct. That’s survival.
My partner was fighting him and so was I. We were fighting together.”
The struggle “seemed like 10 minutes, but it was actually five.
During the course of the struggle, we fell to the ground, but (the suspect) was able to gain his balance and pull out a filet knife, about 10
inches long,” Washington commented.
“I yelled out to Carl, ‘He’s got a knife!’ I grabbed the handle of the
knife to pin him down initially … (and) he said, ‘Kill me or I am going
to kill you.’”
Christie, a 25-year veteran, was stabbed when the knife pierced his
bulletproof vest, “but it didn’t go all the way through. He just got my
arm.”
The man then reached for Washington’s service revolver, but Washington secured and drew it, firing one round. It struck the suspect in
the abdomen.
The incident left lasting marks on both men.
“I think about it all the time, but I’m still working. That’s the most
important thing,” Christie said, adding, “I didn’t think about my own
AWAR
‘Stuck by my side’
GOLD MEDAL OF VALOR
OFFICER CARL CHRISTIE
OFFICER JOHNNY WASHINGTON
ASBURY PARK LOCAL 6
life. I thought about Officer Washington’s life before mine. He’s my
brother. We were fighting for the victim and we were fighting for our
lives.”
Washington explained the day’s traumatic effect.
“Seeing my partner stabbed took a toll on me, mentally,” he said. “It
doesn’t just affect the one who gets stabbed – it affects the person who
witnessed it.”
The trauma waned a bit when the two officers stepped up to accept
their gold medal.
“I see officers from other departments and you think you are going
through something,” Washington reflected. “You’d be surprised at
what they are going through. I’m glad we’re all here as a family, as a
unit and as a brotherhood to get through this.”
“The smallest call can be the biggest call, whether it’s a disorderly
person or a suspicious person – that can be a life-changing call,”
Christie offered. “So always be alert, even on the call doesn’t seem like
they would be a big matter. That’s what kept