SPRINGFIELD, MA (WGGB/WSHM) – Authorities have concluded and released the findings of a deadly officer-involved shooting in Springfield.

On the afternoon of December 20, 2025, Springfield Police responded to the 1100 block of Worcester Street after a 911 came in reporting that a man had ingested some mushrooms and was experiencing a mental health crisis, jumped out a window, and was actively harming himself with a knife.

Once officers arrived, they were told that the man, identified as 38-year-old Dennis Girard of Springfield, was inside the home and reportedly cutting his throat with a knife. They went into the residence and found Girard sitting on a bed, holding a knife, and covered in blood.

Payton North, spokesperson for the Hampden District Attorney’s Office, said, despite repeated commands to drop the knife, Girard refused to comply and continued harming himself. One officer then deployed his department-issued taser multiple times while continuing to order Girard to drop the knife.

After falling back onto the bed, Girard reportedly still refused to let go of the knife. “As an officer moved in to place him in handcuffs, Girard suddenly swung the knife toward the officer. A second officer then discharged a single round from his department-issued firearm, striking Girard,” North explained.

Girard was handcuffed and officers began lifesaving measures, while they waited for emergency medical personnel to arrive. He was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy by the medical examiner’s found that he died from gunshot wounds of the torso and left upper extremity, with sharp force injuries to the neck identified as a contributing factor.

Following the officer-involved shooting, the D.A.’s office began an investigation into whether the shooting was justified. North said Tuesday that, after reviewing all available evidence - including body-worn camera footage, witness interviews, surveillance video, 911 recordings, police reports, and autopsy and toxicology results – it was determined that the shooting were “reasonable, justified, and lawful.

“A loss of life is always a tragedy and our sympathies remain with Mr. Girard’s family and loved ones,” said Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni in a statement. “The officers were responding to a call for help and made repeated efforts to resolve the situation through verbal commands and less-than-lethal force…When Girard swung a knife toward an officer, an immediate threat was presented, and the officer’s response was reasonable, justified, and lawful.”

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