By IRA PORTER and ESTEBAN PARRA • The News Journal • July 7, 2008
Marguerite Bricker says her husband of 20 years didn't really want to commit suicide on the night of June 11.
But events happened quickly after Gary L. Bliss tried to cut his wrist.
She took the razor.
Police were called.
Bliss fired a pellet gun at officers.
The gun looked like a .45-caliber revolver.
Police fired back.
"My husband was threatened when the police arrived," she said. "I don't think anybody makes a conscious effort when they're in that kind of pain that they want police to kill them."
According to state police, Bliss' shooting death is one of several recent incidents involving Delaware residents who provoked officers. Some of these cases, experts say, could be examples of "suicide by cop," in which a person deliberately acts in a threatening way to trigger a lethal response.
In Delaware recently:
•Richard D. Redmond, 52, a former California Highway Patrol officer with a terminal illness, was shot outside his Milford home on June 7 after police were unable to subdue him. He fired several shots into an armored rescue vehicle, forcing police to shoot back.
•Desiree Hogan, 38, fled after shooting her 13-year-old son June 12 in Pike Creek. When police caught up with her in Midvale, she stood outside a home, put a gun to her head and asked police to shoot. She survived after a family member ran out and tackled her.
These cases, police departments across Delaware say, are not necessarily indicative of a spike in such incidents, but are situations they would rather avoid.
"We need these people who are feeling distraught to know that help is available," said Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh, a state police spokesman.
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