Father Of Man Shot, Killed Following Police Standoff Says He Begged Son To Surrender

The father of a man Tulsa police shot and killed following a standoff Monday says he pleaded with his son to put the shotgun down.

Donald Knight walked News On 6 through those tense moments.

Reporter Brian Dorman: "Were you home yesterday?"

Knight: "Yea, I was home when the cops came chasin' him."

Reporter Brian Dorman: "What did you think was going on?"

Knight: "I didn't know. I looked outside and seen what was going on. Then, I knew they was after him."

Knight was home when police quickly packed his street blocking it off chasing after his 40-year-old son, Joseph.

"He got out of his truck, went over there and sat down by the step, back of the house and stuck that gun to his face,” Knight recalled.

Related Story: Man Shot, Killed Following Tulsa Police Standoff

According to police, Joseph held a shotgun to his face for more than an hour. Knight says he was begging his son to surrender.

"I was trying to get him to give up, put the gun down,” said Knight. “I told him it wasn't worth it, doing that, but he wouldn't do it."

Reporter Brian Dorman: “Did he say anything to you?

Knight: "He said he wasn't going back to jail, he would be dead instead of having to go back."

“It was scary it was,” said neighbor Lavonda Singleton. “It was really scary. I didn't know what was gonna happen."

Police rushed Singleton to safety during the standoff.

“They come in my yard and picked me up and took me down the street,” she said. “Then, I started hearing gunshots and then all of a sudden it was over.”

What she heard was Joseph accidently firing his shotgun and two police officers shooting as Joseph pointed the gun at them.

“It was sad. It was real sad,” said Singleton. “I felt sorry for the guy, but he chose to do that."

Knight says his son was trying to get his life back on track.

His criminal record showed that some of his felonies included assault on a police officer and assault or battery with a dangerous weapon.