Cops rushed to a condo on Prospect Street to help two officers who were struggling to detain a 6‑foot‑6, 200-pound man. They found two locked doors in their way.
Two smashed doors later, the police had the man in custody.
Here’s what happened, according to police spokesman Officer Dave Hartman:
At 3:37 p.m. on Thursday, Officers Curtis Miller and Scott Durkin responded to a business on Elm Street to investigate an abuse complaint. An 80-year-old man told cops “he had suffered several months of physical and verbal abuse at the hands of a live-in acquaintance’s stepson.”
The officers headed to a condo on Prospect Street to find the stepson, a 49-year-old man. “They had been warned that the suspect would most likely fight with police if they tried to effect an arrest.”
Miller and Durkin were welcomed by the suspect’s 80-year-old stepmother. “They passed through two doors, each of which closed and locked behind them.” The mother pointed the cops down a hallway, where they saw the stepson, who stands 6 feet 6 inches tall, and weighs over 200 pounds, standing in a bathroom doorway.
The man ran to a bedroom. The cops followed and struggled with him as they tried to get him into handcuffs. They radioed for help as they continued to fight with the man. The stepmother “tried to get in the way of the officers as they tried to control her stepson.”
“The officers now had the challenge of protecting the elderly woman from harm, while at the same time, trying to keep her away from the situation.”
Meanwhile, back-up forces arrived and found they couldn’t enter the building through the locked front door. “Lt. Kenneth Blanchard smashed down the glass door and led officers to the condo. Officer Robert Hayden kicked in the locked condo door and with others, rushed to the aid of the struggling officers.
“Officers Miller and Durkin had now been fighting with [the suspect] for a while. Officer Hayden announced his intention to Taser [the suspect]. The officers let go of him for a second and he was Tasered. Once handcuffed, [the suspect] continued resisting arrest. He was taken to a waiting police car.”
The suspect complained of arthritis pain and demanded an ambulance. Police took him to Yale-New Haven Hospital, where Lt. Blanchard and Officer Miller also received medical treatment for a lacerated arm and human bite, respectively.
Police arrested the man and charged him with assault on an elderly person, domestic disorderly conduct, two counts of assault on a police officer and interfering.
