St. Paul police will release body camera footage of officer fatally shooting armed man

St. Paul Police will release body camera footage from Sunday's incident where an officer shot and killed an armed man who rammed his squad SUV, department officials said.

Officer Steven Mattson, a rookie who has been with the department less than a year, shot and killed Ronald K. Davis, 31, at an intersection in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood.

Chief Todd Axtell has decided to release the video Tuesday, "after the pertinent parts of BCA investigation are complete and Davis family has opportunity to view," the department said on its Twitter account Friday.

Authorities said Mattson was stopped at the intersection of W. Thomas Avenue and N. Griggs Street just before 6 p.m. Sunday, when a vehicle rear-ended his squad car.

An altercation ensued shortly after both men exited their vehicles. Davis ignored repeated commands to drop a knife, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and Mattson fired his gun.

Davis was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators found a knife next to Davis' body, police said. Ramsey County Attorney John Choi's office will decide whether the officer should face charges once the investigation is complete.

It comes as police grapple with what Axtell calls a stretch of unprecedented violence in the city. In response, he has mobilized his entire department and beefed up patrols on the streets.