HARTFORD — Hartford police are continuing to investigate an off-duty city firefighter’s wounding of a man married to his cousin.
Deputy Police Chief Brian Foley says 25-year veteran firefighter Donald Brown has a handgun permit and cooperated with investigators after the Friday shooting on Hebron Street in the North End. No charges have been filed and Brown isn’t in custody.
Foley said Brown told investigators he was afraid of 31-year-old Lascelles Reid of Simsbury, the man he shot after an altercation. Brown asked a neighbor to call 911 afterward.
Foley says Reid had a single wound to the torso and is in serious condition Saturday at St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center. Foley said police haven’t interviewed Reid.
Fire officials say Brown has been on leave since March 2014 for a work injury. His status won’t be determined until after the shooting investigation.
Captain Helene Lynch of the Hartford Fire Department released a statement on Saturday, April 25 stating that Brown’s involvement in the shooting is “under investigation by the Hartford Police Department and the States Attorney’s Office. We are confident that both agencies will conduct a thorough and exhaustive investigation of the incident and the status of his employment will then be determined.”
