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ST. PETERSBURG (CBSMiami/AP) — The holidays aren't always a happy time for families.

Authorities say a Florida sheriff's deputy shot and killed a domestic violence suspect who came at his partner with a large knife.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office says deputies Tyler Green and Brennen Wede went to an apartment complex for disabled veterans Wednesday night after a woman complained that her boyfriend, William Beavers, was drunk and violent.

Green and Wede went to the couple's apartment. The sheriff's office says in a news release that after the deputies knocked on the door several times, Beavers came out with a knife held over his shoulder and directed it at Wede.

Authorities say Green told Beavers to drop the knife several times then shot him when he refused.

The 43-year-old Beavers died at the scene.

An investigation is underway.