DALLAS – Dallas police released video of an officer-involved shooting that ended with the death of a man armed with a knife.
They also shared more details about what happened in the moments leading up to 46-year-old Martin James Benes’ death.
Dallas Police Shooting Video
Timeline:
Officers initially responded to Benes’ home on Fair Hills Lane on Tuesday evening. Police said his mother had called 911 to report that he was threatening to harm himself.
“Yes, very, very emergency. My son is suicidal,” she said in the 911 call.
In that call and in separate text messages to dispatch, family members told police Benes was acting erratically and suicidal.
Body camera video released on Friday shows officers arriving at the home and knocking on the door. Benes’ mother answered, and officers talked to her on the front porch.
The video also shows Benes approaching the officers who were standing near the front door with a knife. They backed away, giving him verbal commands.
“Put it down, Martin. Put down the knife,” an officer said.
After Benes returned inside the home, his mother told officers her son had cut off his ankle monitor.
As a result, Dallas Police Chief David Comeaux said a warrant was issued for insufficient bond for an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon – family violence charge he had related to a pending case.
“The warrant was issued because he cut off his ankle monitor,” Chief Comeaux said.
A “Right Care Team,” which included officers and licensed mental health counselors, was called in to try to convince Benes to surrender. They could not get him to come out.
“Right Care, when it’s a violent suspect, there’s only so much they can do,” Comeaux said.
So, around 11 p.m., a SWAT team was called in.
A police robot that was sent in at some point found Benes asleep in an upstairs bedroom with the knife still in his hand.
The SWAT team moved in, and that’s when the deadly encounter played out. The video shows SWAT officers using a stun gun first before firing their service weapons.
“As he was laying in bed, you heard the officer say, ‘He has a knife. He has a knife still in his hand.’ So, the hope was when they Tased him that he would drop the knife and they could take him into custody without incident. That was the hope,” the police chief said. “He went through the Taser, still had the knife. Started coming towards the officers. You saw them starting to retreat. Another officer then tries to Tase him again. He was shortening up the distance, and the officers fired their weapons.”
What’s next:
The shooting is now being investigated by the Dallas Police Special Investigations Unit.
The Dallas County District Attorney’s Office is also conducting an independent investigation, and the Office of Community Police Oversight was notified.
The two SWAT officers who fired their weapons are both veterans with the department.
They are on routine administrative leave.
Martin James Benes 
Family members told FOX 4 that Benes was a Dallas lawyer who was battling his own criminal charges.
In February, Benes was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. According to court records, he tried to run over a neighbor with his car, then resisted arrest and fought off Tasers. Three days later, he was accused of stabbing a woman at his home.
His mental status was a growing concern for family members in the days leading up to his death.
He was allegedly drinking heavily on Tuesday and became angry after realizing family members had hidden his car to prevent him from driving.
Benes’ mother said her son cut off his court-ordered ankle monitor in an act of frustration and cut himself in the process.
The family hoped the police would help the struggling lawyer.
“I’m shocked that this could happen. I’m still in disbelief,” his brother, Paul Benes, told FOX 4. “He worked for some of the most prestigious law firms. He has a family, two children that are going to miss him dearly.”
The Source: The details in this story come from the Dallas Police Department and Martin James Benes’ family members.
North DallasCrime and Public Safety