Guilty plea in brother’s fatal shooting

Mom says her son was never the same after 2017 arrest in which he was allegedly beaten by officers

A New Britain man has pleaded guilty in connection with the 2019 fatal shooting of his half brother in Manchester.

Millard Jackson, 31, struck a plea bargain on Thursday in Hartford Superior Court in connection with the death of 45-year-old Joseph Swan on Jan. 21, 2019, according to judicial records.

During the proceeding, Jackson pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree manslaughter with a firearm, court records show.

Jackson is being held on a $1 million bond pending sentencing. He is due back in court on May 11.

The day Swan was killed, Manchester police responded to the report of a shooting on Eldridge Street. Swan was found suffering from a gunshot wound to the head. He was taken to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Swan’s mother, Carolyn Swan, told police only she and her two sons were home at her Manchester apartment at the time of the shooting. Standing in the kitchen, she heard a gunshot go off and ran to the porch to find her son lying face-up, according to court papers.

When Carolyn Swan asked Jackson, her other son, what had happened, he just stood there silently, court papers indicated.

In the weeks leading up to the shooting, relatives of Jackson said they grew concerned about his deteriorating mental health and his access to firearms, according to court documents. Carolyn Swan told the Courant in 2019 that Jackson was never the same since he was arrested by Manchester police in July 2017, when she alleges he was beaten by officers. Following that incident, she described his behavior as odd and sometimes bizarre, as he was always concerned that someone was out to hurt him, she said.

According to Manchester police, Jackson — who was not charged in Swan’s death until March 2019 — was initially charged with murder, criminal use of a firearm, criminal possession of a firearm and criminal possession of ammunition.