In the late afternoon of March 2, 2016, the life of 41-year-old Daniel David Burkhardt, a male resident of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, came to a tragic end in an alley in the city's West End. Johnstown police officers responded to a 911 call concerning a man armed with knives. Upon their arrival, they discovered Burkhardt holding a knife in each hand. The situation quickly escalated when, according to police accounts, he refused repeated commands to drop the weapons and began to advance on the officers.
The officers initially attempted to subdue Burkhardt using less-lethal force, deploying both bean bag rounds from a shotgun and a stun gun. These measures, however, failed to stop his advance. As he continued to move toward them while still armed, three officers fired their service weapons, striking him multiple times. Emergency first aid was administered at the scene by the officers before Burkhardt was transported to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. The Cambria County coroner later confirmed that the cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds to the upper body, and the manner of death was ruled a homicide.
Following the shooting, the three officers involved were placed on administrative leave, a standard procedure in such cases. The Pennsylvania State Police conducted a thorough investigation into the incident. More than eight months later, on November 17, 2016, the Cambria County District Attorney announced that the officers' actions were legally justified. The investigation concluded that the officers acted in self-defense and that no criminal charges would be filed against them. An internal police investigation had also previously cleared the officers, allowing them to return to duty.
