WINONA Minn. — Aware of criticism about using an armored war vehicle after a stabbing in the Maplewood Townhomes neighborhood, the Winona Police Department issued a statement that the suspect had a history of resisting police. Also, the statement said, officers “received further information that the suspect had made comments about not going back to jail, as well as a mention of guns.” Officers tried to contact the suspect, Lamel Vance Lillard, before calling in the local SWAT team and the armored vehicle, according to the statement. The bottom line was that the incident was brought to a close without further violence, the statement said. “While the presence of the MRAP has come under some scrutiny, the presence of the vehicle served its purpose as a ‘de-escalation tool.’”
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