A state investigation revealed that a man fatally shot by police in Connecticut had to wait longer for medical assistance because an officer experiencing a “mild anxiety attack” took the ambulance meant for him.
What did the state report say about the deadly shooting?
The report released Tuesday by the state inspector general determined that the fatal shooting of Dyshan Best, a 39-year-old Black man, was justified because the officer pursuing him had “reasonable belief he was in immediate danger” after Best had a gun in his hand.
Best was shot in the back and later died of his injuries at Brideport hospital. The nature of his death has raised concerns about the March 31 shooting after the report revealed that Best waited an extra 10 minutes for a second ambulance to arrive, The Associated Press reported.
The first ambulance arrived at the scene at 6:02 p.m. The ambulance was called to transport Best to the hospital, but instead, Officer Erin Perrotta, who is white, used it after experiencing an anxiety attack. She was also one of the officers involved in the foot chase, according to the report.
Details on the ambulances that transported the officer and Dyshan Best
The American Medical Response report regarding Perrotta noted the nature of the call to be “Stab/Gunshot/Penetrating Trauma.” The report’s narration stated that PD instructed the emergency crew on the scene to “hurry up and take their partner” as she was having an anxiety attack.
“PD rushed crew off scene, no info was given to crew. Pt wants to be transported to closest facility for further eval. Pt jumped into the ambulance and was secured with straps,” the report’s narration continued.
Paramedics confirmed that Perrotta declined treatment in the ambulance.
“I am fine, I just needed to get out of here,” she said at the time, per the report.
The second ambulance arrived at 6:12 p.m. and transported Best to the hospital, where he was brought into treatment at 6:22 p.m., but he later died during surgery at 7:41 p.m., according to The Associated Press and the state report.
What is Best’s family saying?
One of Best’s nieces, Tatiana Barrett, told The Associated Press that the family has been saddened over Best’s death and believes that he could have survived the shooting if he had received treatment in time.
“Honestly it’s heartbreaking hearing all these details,” she told the outlet. “We were looking for justice. In our community, we don’t know what justice looks like. We want justice for my uncle. We truly believe he was murdered.”
Best had an extensive criminal record, but reportedly turned his life around after landing a commercial trucking job. He was in town on the day of the shooting to attend a friend’s funeral, per The Associated Press.
The shooting occurred after a foot chase involving police
Events leading up to the deadly shooting began after someone called 911 to report a fight involving around 30 people, and a gun was involved, per the report. Several officers were dispatched to East Main Street, where the brawl had occurred. Perrotta was one of the officers who arrived at the scene.
When officers arrived, a man approached Perrotta and pointed in the direction of two Black men and a Black Chevy Tahoe. According to the report, he told the officers that they had a gun. The men got back into the vehicle and proceeded to leave when Perrotta ordered them to stop and step out of the truck.
One officer ordered the driver to step out of the vehicle, and Perrotta went over to the passenger side and ordered Best to do the same, according to the report. She told him that he needed to be patted down after someone had stated they had a gun. As he stepped out of the vehicle, he had a vape, a cell phone and a liquor bottle in his hands. He then took off running, per the state report.
Perrotta and another officer ran in pursuit of Best, with Officer Yoon Heo joining in the foot chase shortly after arriving at the scene. Best continued running off Boston Avenue and through a Citgo gas station, dropping the items he had in his hand along the way.
Did Best have a weapon?
He allegedly had a loaded High Point 9mm luger pistol and removed it from somewhere on his body and held it in his hand. After a long pursuit that ended at a junkyard, Heo eventually drew his weapon and fired twice at Best, with one shot striking Best in the back.
Best’s interactions with police were captured on bodycam footage.
“I got shot,” Best said while wounded on the ground, the videos show, per The Associated Press. Heo responded, “You pulled a gun on me.” Best said, “No I didn’t.” Heo then said, “Yeah you did.” Inspector General Eliot Prescott said a handgun was found near Best at the scene, according to The Associated Press.
Police said a .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun was retrieved at the scene. However, an attorney for Best’s family argued against that claim.
“We zoomed in and it appears to be the vape, so it didn’t look like a pistol in his hand,” attorney Darnell Crosland told ABC 7 New York. “Now, we see a pistol probably featured in this report, but we don’t see a pistol in his hand. So, that’s still questionable.”
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