MIDDLEBURY — A knife wielding woman experiencing a mental health crisis was taken into protective custody by Middlebury police during the afternoon of Thursday, May 15, following an encounter that saw authorities deploy taser and bean bag projectiles to eventually subdue her.

The incident unfolded at around 3:20 p.m. at 15 Court St., not far from Mary Hogan Elementary School, where students were being discharged following the school day.

According to Middlebury Police Chief Jason Covey, a pedestrian flagged down an officer driving on Court Street and reported that a woman in a Court Street apartment building was yelling at people outside.

“When the officer approached, the woman in question waved a large knife at him from a distance, and the officer determined that (she) was experiencing a mental health crisis,” Covey stated through an email exchange with the Independent. “Officers quickly contained the scene and requested assistance from the Counseling Service of Addison County. Vermont State Police and Middlebury Regional EMS also responded to assist. The woman was eventually subdued by the use of less-lethal weapons and was taken into custody. She was transported to Porter Hospital for evaluation.”

The term “less-lethal weapons,” in this case, included Less Lethal Impact Munition (commonly known as “bean bags”), and a Conducted Electrical Weapon, a.k.a. a taser, according to Covey.

The chief said the case is being treated as a mental health-related incident and the woman hasn’t been cited for any crime.

Mary Hogan Elementary Principal Jen Kravitz alluded to the incident in an email she sent to school families Friday morning, May 16.

“I am writing to let you know that Middlebury Police responded to a public safety incident near the Mary Hogan School property just after dismissal yesterday afternoon. There was no impact on Mary Hogan or the Mary Johnson Children’s Center after-school community, but some of our students and parents may have witnessed Middlebury Police’s response, so I want to assure you that we have been in contact with Middlebury police, and they shared that the incident has been resolved.”