In This Issue: Vol 8, No. 1 (Summer, 2007)

Hartford Officer Robert Lawlor Charged with Manslaughter

Officer Robert Lawlor, an 18-year veteran of the Hartford Police Department, has been charged with first-degree manslaughter and assault. A conviction of manslaughter in Connecticut carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.

Ironically the incident that has brought these charges occurred in a neighborhood where Officer Lawlor was stabbed, shot twice, and threatened with deadly force – the rough “North End” section of Hartford known for illegal drug sales and gun violence. Officer Lawlor was assigned to the Hartford City federal plainclothes unit whose sole aim is to remove firearms from the community.

On May 7, 2005, Officer Lawlor was working with ATF Special Agent Daniel Prather, who had less than six months of on-the-job experience. At 7:15 p.m., Sgt. Lawlor recognized a black Maxima Toyota that was being sought in a drive-by shooting and murder. The unoccupied car was in a convenience store parking lot on Main and Sanford Streets. Officer Lawlor observed a black male, Jashon Bryant, operating the slide mechanism of a semi-automatic pistol at the passenger side of the vehicle. Lawlor and Prather, with their badges displayed, walked across the parking lot toward the car. At that point, Brandon Henry, a black male, exited the store and got in the driver’s side of the car. Bryant got in the car and the car backed up.

Officer Lawlor and Agent Prather got in front of the Maxima with weapons drawn and shouted loudly and repeatedly: “Police officers. Cut off the ignition and put your hands on the dashboard.” Officer Lawlor was on the passenger side; Agent Prather was on the driver’s side. At first the driver complied by turning off the car and he and the passenger put their hands on the dash. But suddenly they began moving their hands and talking rapidly. Officer Lawlor immediately thought that Henry was trying to conceal the pistol he had seen a few moments earlier outside of the car. He instructed Agent Prather to call for backup and approached the passenger door; Prather remained at the front of the vehicle facing the driver.

At that moment, two things happened simultaneously: Henry reached to the floor on the passenger side, which led Lawlor to believe he was retrieving the pistol; and Henry started the vehicle and accelerated forward.

Since Agent Prather was standing in front of the car, Officer Lawlor believed his partner was in immediate danger of being struck by the accelerating vehicle. At the same time, he thought that the passenger was about to raise the weapon to shoot him. Officer Lawlor jumped back and fired five rounds at the car, striking Bryant and wounding him fatally. The driver, Brandon Henry, was struck in the chest but managed to drive the car over curbs and grass to exit the parking lot. Backup officers pursued the vehicle. When it struck another vehicle 20 minutes later, Henry fled on foot. He was found an hour later hiding under a porch.

Both Bryant and Henry had long police records. The year before this episode, a handgun linked forensically to five shootings was found in Bryant’s closet He was also identified as the shooter of a business owner during a robbery. Henry later admitted to police that he fled the scene that night because he had cocaine in the car and did not want to go back to jail.

An initial report by the Hartford Police Department concluded that Officer Lawlor was justified in firing his weapon. But the Hartford police probe came to an end when Waterbury State’s Attorney John Connelly took over the investigation.

Officer Lawlor’s attorney, Michael Georgetti, has written a rebuttal to the report by the State’s Attorney, calling it “factually and legally incorrect.” Georgetti says that his client acted properly and pursuant to the training provided by the Hartford Police Department.

LELDF is helping Officer Lawlor with legal fees as well as the expense of expert ballistic and proper use-of-deadly-force witnesses to testify at the trial.