It happened around midnight at a home on West 15 1/2 Street in The Heights.
A man in his 50s was having a mental episode and wasn't complying with officers' commands, HPD Lt. Emanuel Pavel said. The man fell into a drainage ditch while officers were talking to him.
Police called paramedics to the scene, and the man lost consciousness.
Medics attempted to perform CPR, but the man died at a hospital. An autopsy will be performed to pinpoint the cause of death.