Report: Ansonia Shooting Justified, But Underscores Need For Change

Gregory

ANSONIA — An Ansonia police officer was defending himself and two fellow officers when he shot and killed a man coming at him with a knife inside a house on Myrtle Avenue Jan. 2, according to a report released Friday by the Office of the State’s Attorney.

The shooting of 30-year-old Michael Gregory was justified under state law, according to the report, authored by Stephen J. Sedensky III, the State’s Attorney for the Judicial District of Danbury.

Based on those facts, this state’s attorney finds that Officer (Brendon) Nelson subjectively believed that deadly physical force was necessary to defend himself and the other officers and that belief was objectively reasonable under our law,” according to Sedensky’s report. It is the reasonable belief of the officer at the time he is called to act that governs this evaluation. It was reasonable for Officer Nelson to have believed that had Mr. Gregory reached the officers with his knife he would have seriously injured or killed one of them.”

Click here to read the full report.

However, the incident highlights a national problem — how law enforcement interacts with people with serious mental health problems in volatile situations.

According to interviews with his girlfriend and mother, Gregory had a history of mental health problems dating back to when he was 13. He was diagnosed as bi-polar, and had been drinking heavily in the hours before he was killed.

The police were not aware of his history of mental-health problems. 

CORRECTION: The investigative report points out that Gregory’s mental health issues were not mentioned by the woman who contacted police on the day of the shooting. However, Gregory’s mother noted police had responded to a previous domestic dispute and that she told Ansonia police of her son’s mental health history.

Police were called to the scene on Myrtle Avenue last January because he was acting angrily and irrationally toward his girlfriend — at one point talking about flat-Earth theories.

The troubled behavior was evident on police body-cam video, which showed Gregory telling police they would have to shoot him.

In a later interview with authorities, Gregory’s girlfriend was critical of police tactics, saying Gregory was obviously in mental distress and that officers escalated the situation.

She felt it was clear that he was not in his right state of mind. She felt the police escalated the situation when they did not have to, knowing there was no one else in the house. She did not see any immediate threat that would have called for getting Mr. Gregory out of the house,” according to the investigative report.

Michael Gregory, shortly after picking up a knife in front of three Ansonia police officers.

However, Sedensky’s report notes the officers tried to subdue Gregory with a Taser, which did not work, as the electrical barbs apparently got stuck in Gregory’s jacket. Officers also tried to back away from Gregory as he came toward them with a 4.5 kitchen knife. They repeatedly asked him to drop the weapon, as evidenced by police body-camera footage.

At one point during the encounter, Gregory went into a back room of the house. Police kicked the door not to escalate the encounter, but because they feared he might kill himself.

Click here for a previous story.

Officer Nelson fired his weapon three times. One bullet hit Gregory in the arm and went through his lung, killing him.

In his report, Sedensky notes he has investigated at least three police killings involving people suffering from significant mental health problems.

Usually police-shooting reports are cut and dry, sticking only to the facts at hand.

However, Sedensky takes the unusual step of calling for a change of tactics when it comes to dealing with people with mental-health issues.

This state’s attorney is reluctant to make observations that do not go to his decision and yet when similar situations keep arising, it calls for an exception. That being said, the following suggestions are made regarding possible changes for the future both internally within police departments and with the legislature,” he writes.
 
1. Police 911 operators and police dispatchers should ask the caller if there is any mental health background of which the responding offices should be aware.

2. Police departments should have current protocols and policies regarding the handling of those with mental illness, especially those who are armed.

3. Officers should be held harmless by statute if they make the decision in the field to allow a person to remain alone or to be handled by a social worker and the person does later harm themselves or the social worker. This suggestion to leave the person alone would not apply where a third party’s safety is at risk.

The factual determinations of the case were as follows (this is taken directly from the report):

Based on the evidence from the body camera videos, photos, reports, witnesses and those involved, including Ofc. Brendon Nelson, I find that:

1. Officer Nelson was at 81 Myrtle Ave., Ansonia with Sgt. Flynn and Ofc. Podgorski regarding a man who was prohibited from being there by a court order. That man was Michael Gregory.

2. The officers had been sent to 81 Myrtle Ave., in response to a complaint by Jane Doe that Mr. Gregory, who was not supposed to be there, had taken her cell phone so she couldn’t call the police.

3.Jane Doe said that Mr. Gregory scared her, had been drinking and said he was going to smash everything in the house.

4. Officer Nelson first encountered Mr. Gregory that evening in the kitchen. Mr. Gregory, in front of the police officers, armed himself with a 4.5” bladed knife. He told the officers, including Ofc. Nelson that they were going to have to shoot him or run up on him.

5.The officers told Mr. Gregory that he didn’t want to do that and repeatedly told him to drop the knife.

6. Mr. Gregory slammed and locked the door, leaving the officers outside. Ofc. Podgorski kicked the door open and the officers entered the apartment.

7. Mr. Gregory had moved to a bedroom with the knife and closed the door.

8. The officers continued to talk to Mr. Gregory and readied themselves to use non-lethal force to subdue Mr. Gregory, who kept repeating that the officers were going to have to shoot him. The non-lethal force was a Taser.

9. Even with Mr. Gregory’s statements, the officers could only speculate as what Mr. Gregory’s intentions were in the bedroom. They did not know if he intended to harm himself or them with the knife.

10. Ofc. Podgorski kicked the bedroom door open and Sgt. Flynn lightly kicked it open again when it closed.

11. Ofc. Nelson fired his Taser at Mr. Gregory who was standing at the doorway with the knife. The Taser had no effect on Mr. Gregory.

12. Mr. Gregory then came at Ofc. Podgorski with the knife. Ofc. Podgorski and the other officers backed away from Mr. Gregory but he kept coming at them.

13. In response to this, Ofc. Nelson fired his pistol at Mr. Gregory quickly 3 times, striking Mr. Gregory with one of the shots.

14. Mr. Gregory died from this gunshot.

Based on those facts, this state’s attorney finds that Officer Nelson subjectively believed that deadly physical force was necessary to defend himself and the other officers and that belief was objectively reasonable under our law. It is the reasonable belief of the officer at the time he is called to act that governs this evaluation. It was reasonable for Officer Nelson to have believed that had Mr. Gregory reached the officers with his knife he would have seriously injured or killed one of them.

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