Police in New York City fatally shot a woman Monday afternoon after she allegedly stabbed two people, killing one and injuring another, during an attack in Times Square, authorities said.

The incident occurred around 4:30 p.m. near West 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue, according to NYPD officials. Officers responded to reports of a stabbing and confronted the suspect nearby, where sources described her as emotionally disturbed and armed with two kitchen knives.

The female victim was pronounced dead at a hospital, police said. The male victim remained hospitalized in critical condition. Authorities have not released the identities of either victim or the alleged attacker pending notification of family members.

Video footage posted to social media appeared to show officers repeatedly ordering the woman to drop her weapons near an NYPD substation before they deployed a Taser and then fired their weapons as she continued moving toward them, sources told ABC News. Officers recovered kitchen knives from the scene, according to photographs published by the New York Post.

Police said they do not believe the attack was terrorism-related. No information about a possible motive had been released as of Monday evening.

What the Left Is Saying

Progressive advocates and some community organizers expressed concern over police use of lethal force in encounters involving individuals experiencing mental health crises, calling for more investment in alternative response systems.

The Legal Aid Society issued a statement noting that police-involved shootings of people described as emotionally disturbed remain a persistent pattern in New York City. The organization has long advocated for the expansion of the city's Crisis Prevention and Intervention Team program, which pairs mental health professionals with officers on certain calls.

We continue to see these tragic outcomes when people in crisis encounter armed law enforcement rather than trained clinicians who can de-escalate without lethal force, a spokesperson said. Every year we lose people who could have been helped through proper mental health intervention rather than police confrontation.

Council Member Tiffany Cabán, who has championed criminal justice reform measures, posted on social media that the incident highlighted ongoing gaps in the city's mental health infrastructure. When someone is in crisis and needs help, they should encounter a clinician, not a gun, she wrote.

What the Right Is Saying

Law enforcement supporters and some elected officials emphasized the immediate threat posed to officers and bystanders in a densely crowded public space, saying police responded to protect lives.

NYPD Commissioner Caban said at a news conference that officers faced an active attacker who had already wounded two people and continued advancing despite multiple commands to stop. When someone is actively stabbing innocent people in one of the most crowded locations in the world, our officers have an obligation to protect the public, he said.

The Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York issued a statement defending the officers' actions as necessary under the circumstances. These officers encountered an armed attacker who had already killed someone and was continuing to pose an imminent threat. They did not create this situation; they ended it before more people were hurt or killed, PBA President Patrick Hendy said.

Republican City Council Member Joann Ariola said she supported the department's handling of what appeared to be a rapidly evolving emergency. We should never second-guess officers who are forced to make split-second decisions to protect innocent New Yorkers from an active threat, she said in a statement.

What the Numbers Show

The NYPD has faced 14 officer-involved shootings so far this year as of late August, according to department statistics. That represents a decrease from 21 such incidents during the same period last year.

New York City recorded 51 police-involved shootings resulting in injuries or deaths in all of 2025, down from 62 in 2024 and 78 in 2023, department data shows. The city has more than 30,000 uniformed officers serving a population of roughly 8.3 million people.

The city's 911 system received approximately 6.2 million calls for service last year, with about 120,000 classified as involving mental health crises, according to NYPD figures. Of those crisis-related calls, the Crisis Prevention and Intervention Team program—which pairs specially trained officers with mental health clinicians—handled roughly 18,000 incidents.

The Bottom Line

The Times Square stabbing marks one of several violent incidents in or near the tourist-heavy neighborhood this year, drawing renewed attention to public safety concerns in the area. Authorities are expected to release additional details about the victims and investigation findings in coming days.

City officials said a full investigation into the police shooting will be conducted by the NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau and presented to the Bronx district attorney's office for independent review, as required under state law for officer-involved shootings. That process typically takes several weeks to complete.

The incident is likely to reignite debate about how New York City responds to people experiencing mental health emergencies. The city's mental health system has faced ongoing budget constraints despite advocacy groups' calls for expanded non-police response options. Officials said a formal review of the circumstances leading to Monday's confrontation will be included in the department's investigation report.