East Hartford deadly police shooting ruled justified

Twoofficers whofatally shot a man on his East Hartford deck after a violent domestic assault last year were justified in using deadly force, a state’s attorney has found.

In a report released Wednesday, Windham State’s Attorney Anne Mahoney said John J. Carras had punched both Officer Daniel Zaleski and Officer Andre Lyew in their heads, causing Zaleski to nearly lose consciousness, before they shot the school psychologist on Sept. 5, 2019.

“At first glance it seems unusual that two armed police officers could not subdue an unarmed man without the use of deadly force,” Mahoney wrote in her report. “Decisions made by these officers under duress in the confined area of the deck within seconds are easy to second guess.”

But she added that “the officers here responded to what appeared to be a homicide and used voice commands, warnings, physical force, and a Taser to try and contain the enraged suspect whoalthough unarmed, fought as though he had nothing left to lose.”

Police said they had never responded to a domestic violence call at the Skyline Drive house before. Carras, who was shot five times, three times in the chest, once in the left shoulder and once in right side, had fentanyl, alcohol and an antihistamine in his system at the time of his death, the report said.

It was an after-hours text from a colleague of the victim, who was not identified in the report, that set Carras off about 6:15 p.m. that night, Mahoney said.

Carras argued with the womanandstruck her, and when she tried to leave through the deck door, he dragged her back inside, kicking and screaming, the report said.

The children living in the home tried to call 911, but he smacked the phones out of their hands, it said. One had managed to complete the call, however, and the dropped phone picked up the woman’s agonizing screams for help, followed by gasps and then silence. Carras could be heard telling her she is going to die.

A neighbor, Tim Macfarlane, also called 911 after one of the children burst into his house asking for help.

Macfarlane went into the house at the child’s urging and saw that Carras had the woman pinned to the kitchen floor, his hands around her neck, the report said.

“Yeah, we’re good. We’re good,” Carras told Macfarlane, according to a recording provided with the report. “Thank you. Please leave.”

Mahoney wrote, “However, Mr. Macfarlane could see Mr. Carras maintaining his stranglehold uninterrupted by their conversation.”

Lyew was the first officer to arrive. He climbed the steps leading to the back deck and saw Carras with his hands still around the neck of the victim, who had a purple face and appeared lifeless, according to the report. Pointing his gun at Carras, he ordered him off the woman, saying he’d shoot.

Carras eventually complied, and Lyew had him walk toward him, backwards, and lie face down on the deck, which he did, the report said. Lyew told the neighbor to check on the woman, and Macfarlane, a senior master sergeant in the Connecticut Air National Guard, began chest compressions.

At 6:25 p.m., Zaleski arrived and saw that Carras was lying down on the deck, facing the stairs. But when Zaleski went to put Carras in handcuffs, he jumped up, screaming, and punched Zaleski in the face several times, the report said. He put Zaleski in a headlock and struggled to get his gun.

“Officer Lyew thought Officer Zaleski looked like he was becoming unconscious from Mr. Carras’ blows,” Mahoney wrote.

Carras turned to Lyew and rushed him, and Lyew fired his stun gun, the report said. Although probes struck Carras for five seconds, the weapon didn’t stop him. Carras began to shout at Lyew, and Lyew moved closer to try to shock him by thrusting the Taser directly against his body. But Carras punched Lyew in the head, knocking the officer into the kitchen door.

Briefly stunned, Lyew then saw Carras try to throw Zaleski over the deck railing. The report said Carras was 5-foot-11 and 224 pounds, while Zaleski was the same height and 205 pounds. Lyew was 5-foot-6 and 185 pounds.

Lyew dropped his Taser and drew his gun, again warning he would shoot Carras if he didn’t stop, Mahoney wrote. Lyew stepped to his right, in front of the deck stairs, to remove Zaleski from his line of fire.

Carras then turned and rushed Lyew again, screaming, fists clenched, and Lyew fired five times until Carras stopped moving toward him, the report said. Zaleski fired his gun once.

When Carras fell to the deck floor, he looked up at Lyew and said, “Thank you,” the report said.

Zaleski reported to police headquarters that shots had been fired, and Carras was taken to Hartford Hospital by ambulance, the report said. He was pronounced dead at 7:03 p.m.

The victim also was taken there. She survived serious injuries including asphyxiation, bleeding on the brain and a tear in a neck artery, Mahoney wrote in the report.

The officers were taken to St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center, the report said. Zaleski was treated for a lump and swelling on his head, plus a thumb sprain, and Lyew was treated for bruising on his head, nausea and dizziness.