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Cops hit bystanders in New York
02:39 - Source: CNN

Story highlights

The suspect "took out his hand and simulated as if he was shooting," commissioner says

Two women were shot while police tried to subdue an "emotionally disturbed" man

The man was walking into traffic, apparently trying to be hit, police said

CNN  — 

New York police have brought a variety of charges against the “emotionally disturbed” man they say triggered a police shooting near Times Square that wounded two bystanders.

Officers fired three shots at 35-year-old Glenn Broadnax in the Saturday night confrontation a block west of the famous tourist district, hitting two women on a nearby corner in the process, a police statement said Sunday. Broadnax was walking into traffic in front of the Port Authority bus terminal, apparently trying to be hit by cars, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said.

He dodged police who tried to take him into custody, then mimicked shooting a gun at officers, prompting the officers to return fire with real bullets, Kelly said.

“At some time he reached into his pocket, took out his hand and simulated as if he was shooting at them,” Kelly told reporters late Saturday.

Two officers fired three shots before the unarmed Broadnax was brought down with a Taser, the NYPD said. He has been charged with menacing, obstructing governmental administration, riot, criminal possession of a controlled substance, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, the NYPD said in a statement issued Sunday morning. Those charges may change once he goes to court, however.

A 54-year-old woman was shot in the knee and a 37-year-old was grazed in the buttocks, police said. Earlier, they had said the younger victim was 35.

The woman with the knee wound was listed in stable condition, while the other woman was treated and released overnight, hospital officials told CNN.

Later, NYPD Sgt. Lee Jones said that the 54-year-old victim underwent surgery for a gunshot wound to her right leg.

Broadnax was taken to Manhattan’s Bellevue Hospital “as an emotionally disturbed person,” the NYPD said. An investigation into the shooting was under way, Kelly said.

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A witness said Broadnax appeared to have been hit by a cab and was running around trying to get to the driver when police tried to stop him.

“The guy was in the middle of the street in oncoming traffic and the cops were trying to get him out of the road,” Kerri-Ann Nesbeth told CNN. She said the incident left her stunned.

“I hear stories when people don’t even know they are shot, so I checked myself and realized it was all clear,” she said.

It’s the second high-profile case in about a year in which NYPD officers have shot bystanders after opening fire in a busy public space. Police wounded nine pedestrians outside the Empire State Building during an August 2012 gun battle with a man who had just killed a former co-worker. Officers also killed the gunman.

In 2012: All Empire State shooting bystander victims wounded by officers

CNN’s Morgan Winsor, Faith Karimi, Elizabeth Landers, Lindy Royce and Matt Smith contributed to this report.