On Monday afternoon, a San Luis Obispo man was arrested for allegedly swinging a knife at families at Laguna Lake park.
During the holiday, police received reports of a man waving a knife in the air in a restaurant parking lot on the 300 block of Madonna road at 3:06 pm. The police department says they identified the man as 30-year-old Samuel Stokes, who had ran across the street into Laguna Lake park prior to their arrival.
Police say officers attempted to stop and negotiate with Stokes, to no avail; they then used non lethal projectiles, which proved ineffective. The department says they then surrounded Stokes and attempted to arrest him. Stokes fought with officers in a brief scuffle while they were arresting him, but he was eventually taken into custody, police say.
Stokes was booked into the San Luis Obispo county jail on two felony charges: brandishing a weapon, and resisting an officer with force or violence. He was also charged with a misdemeanor: under the influence of a controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia.