Fort Lee police officer fatally shoots woman during mental health call

By Alvin Wu
Domestic Affairs
Fort Lee police officer fatally shoots woman during mental health call

The Pinnacle apartment building, located in Fort Lee, N.J., and location of the fatal police-involved shooting. THE PINNACLE/Handout

July 30 (ZFJ) — A Fort Lee police officer responding to a mental health call fatally shot Victoria G. Lee, 26, of Fort Lee, on Sunday, July 28, according to the N.J. Attorney General’s Office (OAG).

OAG said in a press release that on Sunday, at about 1:25 a.m., Fort Lee police responded to “The Pinnacle” apartment complex on Main Street after receiving a 911 call from a man reporting that his sister was having a mental health crisis and needed to go to the hospital. The caller said that his sister was holding a knife.

Upon arrival, a police officer spoke to the caller outside of the apartment unit in the building’s hallway.

The officer then opened the apartment door and observed two females, one of whom appeared to be the sister. The women told the officer not to enter and closed the door.

The officer knocked on the door, asking the females to open it, as additional officers arrived. After the occupants did not comply, police breached the door.

“As the sister approached the officers in the hallway, one officer fired a single shot, striking the female in the chest,” reads OAG’s press release, which says that the officers immediately rendered medical aid. OAG did not mention if the sister had been holding the knife while approaching the officers.

OAG identified the cop who fired the shot as Police Officer Tony Pickens, Jr., on Aug. 5.

The woman who had been shot was taken to Englewood Hospital and pronounced dead at about 1:58 a.m. Authorities have not released her identity yet.

A knife was recovered at the scene.

Per state law, the Attorney General’s Office is required to investigate any deaths that occur during law enforcement encounters and present the evidence to a grand jury that will decide whether to move forward with an indictment against the officers.

Update 2024-08-11, 16:08 - Added identity of decedent and police officer as released by the N.J. Attorney General’s Office on Aug. 5.

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