SPRINGFIELD, MASS. (WHDH) - SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts man who was left partially paralyzed and in a wheelchair when he was shot by police as he charged at an officer with a knife has been sentenced to five years of probation.
The Republican newspaper reports that 60-year-old Clifford Ahern, of East Longmeadow, was sentenced Tuesday, several weeks after he was found guilty during a bench trial of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. He was cleared of an attempted murder charge.
Authorities say police went to his home in November 2016 after he fled a traffic stop where officers attempted to arrest him on a warrant related to a domestic assault charge. Police testified that Ahern rushed at East Longmeadow police Sgt. Steven Manning with a knife, so another officer opened fire.
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