By John Penney
Norwich Bulletin, Conn.
NORWICH, Conn. — The state’s Office of the Inspector General on Monday released its preliminary report on an October incident in which a Norwich police officer returned fire after being shot at several times by a resident with a rifle.
The brief “Officer-involved Use of Deadly Force” report, by Inspector General Robert Devlin Jr., does not add much new information beyond what was previously provided by the Norwich Police Department and court documents, but identifies the officer as Scott Dupointe and includes police video of the officer taking fire
At approximately 9:55 p.m. on Oct. 26, Dupointe responded to a report of “shots fired” in the area of Westwood Park and observed a man police identified as Andrew O’Lone carrying a rifle. The report states O’Lone fired several shots at Dupointe, hitting his cruiser’s windshield and prompting the officer to return fire.
Neither Dupointe nor O’Lone were shot. O’Lone fled the scene, but surrendered at his 123 Westwood Park residence a short time later, the report states.
In addition to the report, Devlin’s office also released 911 calls, dashboard camera and body-worn camera video related to the incident. The 911 calls include several residents notifying Norwich police dispatch of a man walking around firing a gun and others reporting hearing shots fired in the area of Westwood Park.
The dramatic footage recorded from Dupointe’s cruiser camera — without audio — appears to show the officer driving down a dark street when an individual strolls past and begins firing. Chips of glass fly from the cruiser’s windshield, leaving pock-mocks.
The Office of the Inspector General was recently created as a separate office within the state’s Division of Criminal Justice and is tasked with investigating, among other things, officer-involved shootings.
O’Lone is charged with criminal attempted murder, criminal attempt to commit first-degree assault, assault on a public safety officer, first-degree criminal mischief, illegal possession of an assault weapon, possession of a high-capacity magazine and second-degree criminal mischief. He is is being held on a $1 million bond and is due next in New London Superior Court on Nov. 8.
(c)2021 Norwich Bulletin, Conn.