The Dauphin County, PA, district attorney says the police shooting of a man threatening his family after their car plunged into the Susquehanna River was justified, WGAL reports.

First responders were dispatched to the river Jan. 16 and found a man, his wife, and their 2-year-old daughter on top of a partially submerged car in the icy river.

District Attorney Fran Chardo says the man started yelling "shoot me" and police couldn't calm him down. Police shot 36-year-old Miguel Maldonado when he turned a hunting knife on his wife. He fell into the river, but rescuers were unable to find him and the search was later called off.

"I’ve watched video from a number of angles and he was using a knife as a deadly weapon. The police had to make a decision to attempt to save life and they made a reasonable decision at that moment,” says Chardo. "It would have been irresponsible to do anything differently."

His wife recently told Local21NEWS she had been stabbed by her husband 13 times while he was driving prior to crashing into the water. She climbed into the backseat to call 911 and protect the baby, but she dropped her phone when the car plunged into the water.