Probable Assault Crime Cited For Search

State detectives established probable cause for searching for evidence of first-degree assault in a case where a Hamden police officer and a Yale police officer shot at two unarmed people in Newhallville, according to a search warrant application.

The document contains other new details about the explosive incident, including reports of interviews with a man at whom the officer shot, and with a newspaper deliverer who accused the man of attempted robbery.

That warrant application was filed in New Haven Superior Court on April 22 by state Dets. Christopher Meier and Kevin Duggan, both of the state police’s Central District Major Crime Squad (CDMCS). Superior Court Judge Patrick Clifford signed the warrant; detectives then executed the car search,\ later that same day.

In the warrant application, Meier and Duggan requested permission to search the red Honda Civic that Stephanie Washington and Paul Witherspoon were in at the intersection of Argyle Street and Dixwell Avenue on April 16 just before 4:30 a.m., when they were shot at 16 times by Hamden Officer Devin Eaton and Yale Officer Terrance Pollock. 

Washington was hit by at least one bullet, and was transported to the hospital for surgery, while Witherspoon was not hit by any bullets.

The detectives wrote in the warrant application that they wanted to search the shot-up car because they believed the car contains evidence of a crime of assault in the first degree.

After completing the search, the detectives found four collections of bullet fragments, four bullet projectiles, an iPhone with a gold case, Stephanie Washington’s drivers license and bank cards, a Crafstman folding knife, $22 in cash, and Paul Witherspoon’s state identification card.

The officers also found that the Honda Civic is registered to Stephanie Washington.

The narrative of events includes in the application reveals a host of new information about the officer-involved shooting, which has driven hundreds of angry and grieving protesters into the streets for days and days of rallies and demonstrations, (successfully) calling on the state police commissioner to publicly release Eaton’s body camera footage, surveillance camera footage, and audio recordings of the 9 – 1‑1 call and dispatch calls.

Some of the previously unreported details in the warrant application include:

• A summary of Witherspoon’s interrogation by Hamden police officers immediately after the shooting. Witherspoon told the officers that Eaton had called out to him to get out of the car. When Witherspoon opened the driver side door because the window wasn’t working, he said, ​“he looked to his rear and saw the police officer standing there with the barrel of his gun pointed right at him; the police officer then opened fire at him.” Witherspoon then dived back into the car, landing on the emergency brake.

• The Honda Civic is registered to Washington. (Witherspoon was driving the car at the time of the encounter; Washington was in the passenger seat.)

• A summary of state detectives’ interview with the newspaper delivery man whom Witherspoon allegedly attempted to rob outside a gas station in Hamden. That delivery man said that Witherspoon repeatedly asked him, ​“Do you have anything for me?” Then grabbed newspapers from his hands, rummaged through the delivery man’s pockets, and followed the delivery man to the latter’s car. The delivery man at no point told the detectives that Witherspoon had or simulated having a gun, contrary to what the gas station mini-mart clerk sadi in his initial 911 call. In a subsequent interview with detectives, the clerk later said that Witherspoon did not have a gun, which is what he told the Independent during a brief interview later that week.

Timeline Of Events

The warrant application begins by noting that New Haven State’s Attorney Pat Griffin called the Connecticut State Police Central District Major Crime Squad (CDMCS) at 5:16 a.m. on April 16, requesting that the state investigate a police shooting involving Eaton and Pollock at the intersection of Argyle and Dixwell in New Haven.

“At this point in the investigation,” Meier and Duggan wrote on April 22, ​“CDMCS investigators have determined the following series of events”:

• At 4:20, Hamden Police Department dispatch personnel received an emergency 9 – 1‑1- call from the clerk at the Go On Gas Station/White Stone Mini-Mart at 144 Arch St. in Hamden.. The clerk reported that an African American male customer with dreads, driving a red car with license plate AK63322, and having a female passenged, ​“pulled a gun outside of the gas station on the person who delivers the newspapers and asked him for money.” The detectives write that the alleged robber also harassed a second customer, too.

• Two Hamden police officers were dispatched to a ​“Signal 27” at the gas station, ​“with possible 128 used.” A Signal 27 in Hamden Police Department Radio Signals refers to a street robbery. A Signal 128 refers to a firearm involved.

• At 4:24, Hamden Police Department dispatch personnel notified the New Haven Police Department via the ​‘Hotline’ that they ​“just had a street robbery happen in our town, was heading in your direction on Dixwell Avenue, with a gun used in a street robbery…”

• Immediately thereafter, New Haven Police dispatch personnel notified city officers via radio, which is also heard by Yale officers.

• At approximately 4:27, Yale University Police dispatch personnel notified their officers via radio of the information provided by NHPD.

• At around the same time, Hamden Officer Eaton was driving a marked Hamden Police SUV south on Dixwell Avenue, looking for the red Honda Civic. ​“As he passed Argyle Street in New Haven, he observed a two-door, red Honda Civic pulled partially into (front end in) a driveway on Argyle Street,” the detectives wrote. ​“Officer Eaton turned around on Dixwell Avenue and then turned right on Argyle Street.”

Video surveillance obtained from the Believe-In-Me Empowerment Corp., located at the corner of Dixwell and Argyle, captured the incident, showing Pollock pull onto Argyle Street just behind Eaton.

The warrant does not explain when Pollock arrived on Dixwell, or why he was parked at the corner of Dixwell and Argyle when Eaton drove by.

“Officer Eaton pulled towards the drive side rear of the Honda,” the detectives wrote, ​“stopped his cruiser, then opened the door of his cruiser and drew his handgun. The driver’s door of the Honda opened and moments later Officer Eaton discharged his weapon in the director of the driver/Honda. He moved around the back of the Honda to the passenger side where he continued to fire his weapon. As Officer Eaton was firing his weapon, Officer Pollock exited his cruiser, which was directly in front of the Honda, and began firing his weapon. Officer Pollock did not put his transmission in park and his cruiser rolled into the front end of the Honda. Additional officers arrived on scene approximately 1 minute later and removed both parties from the Honda.”

The search warrant affidavit notes that Washington, who was sitting in the front passenger seat and to whom the Honda Civic is registered, was struck by gunfire, and transported to Yale New Haven Hospital, where she underwent surgery for a ​“non-life threatening injury.”

It also notes that Witherspoon, who was driving the Honda Civic, was not injured in the incident, and was taken into custody and placed in the back seat of a Hamden Police cruiser.

“No weapon/firearm was found on Witherspoon’s person,” the detectives wrote.

The warrant then notes that Hamden officers transported the Go On gas station clerk to the scene of the shooting, ​“where he positively identified Witherspoon as the individual involved in the incident with the newspaper delivery person.” The clerk also identified the Honda that Withespoon was operating.

Witherspoon Interrogated

Witherspoon was then taken to the Hamden Police Department headquarters, where he was interviewed by state police investigators.

He told the detectives that he had been ​“involved in an altercation with a newspaper delivery man at the gas station but denied ever showing a gun, implying that he had a gun, or that he was in possession of a gun.

“Regarding the police shooting, Witherspoon stated that he saw two police cars driving at him from Dixwell Avenue onto Argyle Street. That one of the police cars pulled along the driver side rear of his car and the other police struck the front of his car and stopped. He stated that he didn’t know what was happening, but the police officer that stopped beside his car, got out of his vehicle and ordered him (Witherspoon) to get out of his car. He believed the officer told him to show his hands but because his window doesn’t open, he pushed open the door with his left arm and then reached out the door with both arms and hands extended.

“He said he then swung both legs out of the door and attempted to stand up to get out of the car. He stated that he never reached for anything nor did he have anything in his hands. Witherspoon related that as he was getting out of the car, he looked to his rear and saw the police officer standing there with the barrel of his gun pointed straight at him; the police officer then opened fire at him. He then jumped back into his car by leaning backwards onto the emergency parking brake. He stated that there were bullets coming into his car from the rear and from the front.”

Newspaper Deliveryman Interviewed

The state detectives also wrote that they were able to identify and interview the person delivering the newspapers to the Go On Gas Station.

The delivery man ​“explained that while delivering the newspapers at the mini mart, he was approached by a black male with dreadlocks who was staring at him while he was handing the newspapers to the store clerk.”

He said Witherspoon repeatedly asked him, ​“Do you have anything for me?”

After the delivery man told him that he didn’t have anything for him, Witherspoon grabbed the newspapers that the delivery man was handing to the clerk. Witherspoon ​“didn’t let go of them until the store clerk yelled at him,” the detectives wrote.

He then grabbed the delivery man’s sweater pocket and felt the contents.

The delivery man rushed to his car and locked the door. Witherspoon walked to the back of the car and tapped on the trunk. The delivery man then drove way.

“He told investigators that he was 100 percent sure that [Witherspoon] was trying to rob him,” the detectives wrote. The delivery man also showed the detectives text messages he had sent to his bosses. One text message from 4:25 a.m. stated, ​“Some guy really just tried to rob me at the whitestone gas station.” The second text message from 9:53 a.m. stated, ​“Lastnight someone tried to rob me at the whitestone gas station.”

State investigators then followed up with the gas station clerk who initially called 9 – 1‑1 about the attempted robbery.

“When asked, he stated that he never saw the suspect (Witherspoon) with a firearm,” the detectives wrote. ​“That investigators later reviewed the recorded 9 – 1‑1 call to Hamden PD and where [the clerk] stated, ​‘he pulled a gun on the guy who delivered the paper here…”

“That based upon the facts and circumstances described above,” the warrant application concludes, ​“the Affiants [the state detectives] have probable [cause] to believe that evidence of the crime of Assault in the First Degree…will be found within the 1999 Honda Civic, 2‑door sedar, color red, bearing Connecticut registration AK63322 and CIN #1HGEJ6220XL071620, and registered to Stephanie Washington.”

New Questions

Meanwhile, the state police’s release this week of videos and audio recordings have raised new questions about this case (not to mention a raft of wild rumors).

The questions center on apparent violations of department policies based on the information released:

• Officers are supposed to report that they have entered another city’s jurisdiction. There is no record of Officer Eaton doing that when he drove into New Haven.

• When an officer spots a car being sought in connection with an alleged violent crime, the officer is supposed to radio that information in. Neither Officer Eaton nor Officer Pollock did that.

• Officers are supposed to activate their overhead lights during these stops. Neither officer did that. Activating the overhead lights would have activated the police cruiser’s dash cam as well.

• Neither officer activated a body camera before approaching the car or shooting. They are supposed to do that. (Officer Eaton did activate his camera after shooting, and investigators were later able to recapture shooting footage as a result because of a feature on the device.)

Officials say the state police investigation could take months — meaning these questions may remain unanswered for a while.

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• Protesters Storm PD Seeking Answers In Officer-Involved Shooting; Officials Mum
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• Shot-At Man Plans To File Suit; Clerk Describes Original Complaint
• Outrage Over Shooting Shuts Down Streets
• Elicker: Remove Griffin From Shooting Probe
• Post-Shooting, Focus On Suburban Cops
• Griffin Obtains Search Warrant For Shot-Up Honda; Harp Stands By Griffin
• Top Yale Cops Seek To Rebuild Trust
• Public Seeks Independent Probe
• Farmer Backs Independent Investigation