Body-camera footage released in police shooting of St. Paul woman

Mara H. Gottfried, Pioneer Press
Updated ·4 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Less than 25 seconds after St. Paul officers went into a room where a woman was reportedly feeling suicidal, she pulled a gun from under a blanket and pointed it at officers, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and body camera footage released Friday.

Three officers fired their handguns, striking Pepsi Lee Benjamin, 41, on Monday night. She died at the scene and the Ramsey County medical examiner’s office determined it was from multiple gunshot wounds.

A person who called 911 on Monday screamed, “My daughter is committing suicide!” according to a transcript of the call released by police Friday. The caller said, “Hurry, please!” and then the call cut off. Officers were sent to the 1100 block of East Rose Avenue in the Payne-Phalen area about 7:20 p.m.

The medical examiner’s office identified the woman who died as Pepsi Heinl, which her family said was her married name. They referred to her as Pepsi Benjamin.

What the videos show

Body-camera footage released by the St. Paul police department shows officers called out, “St. Paul Police” as they went into the home. Benjamin’s mother called officers into a back room of the home, the BCA said.

Benjamin was sitting on the floor with her mother. Her distraught mother told officers her daughter’s mouth had been “turning blue” and she hadn’t been breathing.

“Are you OK, ma’am?” an officer asked Benjamin, the footage shows. “… Are you OK? What’s going on today?”

Benjamin said, “I’m tired” and “I’m OK,” but her mother said, “Oh God, she’s not OK.”

An officer asked if Benjamin had taken drugs.

Benjamin then reached under a blanket, stood up and as the officers shouted, “Hey, hey, ma’am, ma’am, ma’am!,” she pointed the gun, the videos show. Her mother was trying to reach for Benjamin.

Related Articles

Officers shot Benjamin. Her mother wasn’t injured.

The officers who fired their guns were Chiking Chazonkhueze, with three and a half years of law enforcement experience, Yengkong Lor, with three years of experience, and Chee Lao, with three months of experience.

Benjamin was born in Duluth and attended Century College in White Bear Lake, according to her obituary. She most recently worked as a security guard.

She is survived by her son, her parents and a sister. Tribal rites are planned for Sunday at a Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe ceremonial building in McGregor, Minn.

Police chief, mayor speak out

Police Chief Axel Henry and Mayor Melvin Carter expressed their condolences Friday to Benjamin’s family and friends. “This was not an outcome that anybody wanted,” Henry said.

“Officers in our city and cities all across the country go to thousands of these types of calls every year,” he said.

Henry said there had been no mention of a weapon before Benjamin pulled the gun and the officers’ videos show “it escalated very quickly.” He said he was struck by the videos showing an “officer leaned over a person, being very empathetic and asking, … ‘Are you OK?” … and seeing how quickly things can change.”

Carter said he’s grateful for officers’ “quick response in coming to the aid of a neighbor in crisis, and responding to a situation that could have been even more deadly.”

State law requires all law enforcement receive training in crisis intervention and mental illness crises, and St. Paul officers regularly receive such training, Henry said.

The St. Paul police department has a Community Outreach and Stabilization Unit, which includes embedded licensed clinical social workers. They work business hours and usually follow up on crisis calls to try to avoid the next crisis call. They don’t often respond to active incidents, according to the police department.

“It’s something that we have to really focus on as an entire community, not just the police department, about how we help and support and deal with people that are in crisis,” Henry said.

The BCA is reviewing the body-camera videos as part of their investigation. The agency said they found a handgun and casings at the scene.

“We hold our police to the highest standard of accountability and transparency, which is why we are releasing the body-worn camera footage immediately after the family had the opportunity to review it,” Carter said in a statement. “We value the urgency in which community members called on us to release it, and appreciate the BCA’s commitment to a timely review, allowing us to reach this point within days.”

When the BCA completes its investigation, the agency will forward its findings to the Ramsey County attorney’s office for review about the officers’ actions.

Suicide prevention information

  • If you need help: If you are in crisis, call 988 or text “Home” to 741741 for free, 24/7 support from the Crisis Text Line. Or, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

  • If you want to help: Five steps to help others as well as yourself at Take5tosavelives.org.

  • Please stay: Read survivor stories at Livethroughthis.org: “Our stories can save lives. You are not alone. Please stay.”

  • Local resources: More local resources at Suicide Awareness Voices of Education (SAVE) at Save.org.

Related Articles