Sam Gurwitt Photo
A year and a half after Hamden cop Devin Eaton opened fire on Paul Witherspoon outside his parked car, Witherspoon has reached a legal settlement with the town.
The Hamden Legislative Council passed a settlement agreement Wednesday evening after a long executive session.
The terms of the settlement have not been released, and both parties have signed confidentiality agreements. Witherspoon’s lawyer, Michael Dolan, said he could not comment on the settlement. Members of the council said the same.
In the wee hours of the morning on April 16, 2019, Hamden cop Eaton and Yale cop Terrence Pollack opened fire on Witherspoon and Stephanie Washington in a car in Newhallville. Washington was injured. The shooting spurred months of police accountability protests in Hamden and kicked off an ongoing conversation about how to reform the town’s police department and the checks on it.
Days after the shooting, Witherspoon announced that he planned to file a lawsuit against the town. With Wednesday’s vote, that suit appears to have ended with a settlement instead. While the both parties have agreed to it, it still needs the signatures of both before it is final.
I'm glad the victims got something. Well deserved. I remember watching the video and seeing the behavior of the one cop behaving like this was a high noon shoot out. This could have ended in a nightmare for both cities.
Congratulations...now be wise about how you spend it.