Knife-weilding teen fatally shot by Santa Cruz deputy identified

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KGO) -- An armed 15-year-old teen boy who was fatally shot by a Santa Cruz deputy near Watsonville has been identified.

Santa Cruz sheriff's deputies responded to the report of a stabbing early Saturday morning.

Upon arriving to the scene, they found two people suffering from stab wounds and a teen armed with a knife with a 4-inch blade.

Deputies tried to subdue the teenager and then shot him after they say he advanced on officers.

Friends of the victim have identified him as Luke Smith, an Aptos High School sophomore. "It's hard to know what could've happened, he was active, he was a surfer, he was a skate aficionado, he was just brilliant, so it's tragic," Mary said.

Deputies say the teenager is related to his stabbing victims who are in critical condition.