SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — A man fatally shot by police during an exchange of gunfire near a Massachusetts casino had called for more police transparency after his own teenage son was shot and wounded by Connecticut officers in 2017.
William Tisdol, 48, of Hartford, Connecticut, was shot at about 2 a.m. Saturday near the MGM Springfield casino, according to a statement Monday from the office of Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni.
Members of the Massachusetts State Police Gaming Enforcement Unit were responding to a report of a man in the casino “acting aggressive to others and possibly armed with a firearm," the statement said.
According to the preliminary investigation, the man was located as he was leaving the casino, police gave chase on foot and gunfire was exchanged, the DA's office said.
Tisdol was hit and taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the statement said.
The shooting is under investigation to determine whether the use of deadly force by police was appropriate and whether criminal charges are warranted, Gulluni's office said.
At 15, Tisdol's son, Caleb Tisdol, was one of two teens injured in December 2017 when five New Britain, Connecticut, police officers investigating a series of carjackings and robberies opened fire on a car they tried to pull over.
Zoe Dowdell, 20, a rapper known as Gangstalicious, was killed during shooting. The officers ultimately were cleared of wrongdoing. The investigative report said Dowdell’s car was on the sidewalk and accelerating toward officers.
The older Tisdol told FOX61 in 2018 that police dashcam footage he was shown did not match the police report of the shooting and asked for the public release of more police video.
“After the first shots, Caleb yelled out the car, ‘He is dead. You can stop shooting.’ When they heard my son’s voice, they opened fire again,” William Tisdol said.
The older Tisdol told the Hartford Courant in 2018 that the segment of video he saw clearly showed his son had his hands up.
Caleb Tisdol, now 20, was sentenced in August to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to robbery, attempted robbery, and drug and gun charges.
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