Patient charged after 3 staff members stabbed at Buffalo Psychiatric Center

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo police said three staff members were taken from the Buffalo Psychiatric Center by ambulance after they were stabbed by a patient Wednesday morning.

The incident inside the Forest Avenue facility happened just after 9 a.m. The suspect in the matter, 34-year-old resident Calvin Haskins, has been taken into custody.

“Earlier today, three staff members were injured during an incident at the Strozzi Building of the Buffalo Psychiatric Center campus and we are actively assisting the Buffalo Police Department’s investigation into this matter,” a statement from New York State’s Office of Mental Health read. “The Office of Mental Health’s top priority is the safety of our staff and the individuals we serve, and our thoughts are with the employees who were injured and their families.”

In a conference Wednesday afternoon, Buffalo police said that the alleged attacker used a knife. The incident took place in an area of the complex that can be accessed without being screened for weapons.

The three victims, who were all taken to ECMC, were identified as a 45-year-old man, a 55-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman. A source at ECMC said that all three of the victims are in stable condition.

Haskins has been charged with three counts of assault and a single count of criminal possession of a weapon. He was arraigned on Wednesday afternoon.

Haskins has a history of stabbings. It was confirmed to News 4 on Wednesday that Haskins was charged in connection to a stabbing at the Fountain Plaza Train Station in downtown Buffalo in 2013, where he allegedly stabbed another man. He was charged with attempted murder.

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