Oct 15, 2008 3:34 pm US/Eastern
Ga. Man Sentenced For Stabbing 2 In NYC
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Lee Coleman was shot by an off-duty police officer after going on a stabbing spree in Manhattan.
CBS
A Georgia man who stabbed two strangers in Manhattan before being shot by an off-duty policeman has been sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Lee Coleman, of Rome, Ga., pleaded guilty last month to first-degree assault. Police say he walked into a restaurant kitchen on 34th Street near the Empire State Building last October and grabbed knives. Police say Coleman stabbed 57-year-old restaurant worker Amansit Singh in the face, and outside he slashed 67-year-old Susan Baron on the arms, face, neck and abdomen.
Officer Gregory Chin saw the attack and shot the 38-year-old Coleman once in the torso. Both victims recovered.
Manhattan Justice Rena Uviller said during sentencing that Coleman was a tragic example of a mentally ill person who refuses to take psychoactive medicine but should be required to.
His family knew he was suffering from severe mental illness and stopped taking his medication. In an exclusive interview, Lee Coleman's family told CBS 2HD what they believe led to the mayhem.
"I was trying to give my nephew a chance to turn himself in, and get help" Alexander Flowers said. "I waited too long I guess."
"He seemed like he was ready to go, and he was understanding what I was saying to him," Flowers said. "We got outside, he bolted."
The only thing that stopped him was Gregory Chin -- an off-duty cop -- who fired his gun.
"I understand that," Flowers said. "The officer in my eyes did what he was supposed to do."
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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