Santa Monica police used a 40mm less-lethal launcher to subdue a man carrying a hatchet on Monday morning, July 6, after he ignored repeated commands to drop the weapon while walking through an area with pedestrians present near the beach.

Officers responded to Ocean Way and Bay Street at approximately 6:58 a.m. after receiving a report of a man with blood on his face waving a hatchet as he walked through the neighborhood, the Santa Monica Police Department said.

A short time later, officers located the man several blocks away near Barnard Way and Fraser Street. He was still armed and did not comply with repeated commands to stop and drop the weapon, according to police.

With pedestrians in the area, officers fired the 40mm less-lethal launcher. The department said the decision was made to gain compliance and reduce the risk of a deadly force encounter. The man was detained without further incident.

No officer discharged a firearm.

Santa Monica Fire Department personnel evaluated the man at the scene before transporting him to a local hospital for further evaluation, police said. His name has not been released, and no charges have been publicly announced.

The incident remains under review consistent with department policy, a standard step following any use-of-force deployment, according to SMPD.

The confrontation follows a June 23 situation at Santa Monica Place in which SMPD's Crisis Negotiation Team took a person experiencing a mental health crisis into custody without injury, also transporting that individual to a hospital for evaluation.

Anyone with information about the July 6 incident is asked to call the Santa Monica Police Department at 310-458-8491.