Indiana couple says police saved their lives by shooting son

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - A family friend of an Indianapolis couple whose son was fatally shot by police as he held a knife to his mother's throat says the officers' actions saved their lives.

Police fatally shot 51-year-old Kent Norman at his parents' home Saturday after he refused to drop a butcher knife he was holding to his 74-year-old mother's throat.

Norman had earlier beaten his 78-year-old father unconscious.

Marshall Pinkus is a longtime friend of John and Mary Jane Norman. He tells The Indianapolis Star (http://indy.st/17u1Wsn ) the couple is devastated but also thankful.

Pinkus says the couple wants the public and police to know they consider the two officers who saved them "heroes of the highest order."

He says the Normans aren't sure why their troubled son became so enraged that day.

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Information from: The Indianapolis Star, http://www.indystar.com