By Deidre E. Montague
When Audrey Jones thinks about her deceased brother, Steven “Stevie” Jones, she wants people to know that he was a “loving and kind” man, who was “compassionate [and] always make sure that the community had their snow shoveled or would help out [his] family members if they needed it.”
These were her words during her family’s press conference in collaboration with the Hartford and Connecticut NAACP and The Ben Crump Law Firm on Monday, Mar. 9 at Phillips Metropolitan CME Church on 2550 Main Street.
It’s been 10 days since she and the Jones family have been mourning Steven’s death, after he was shot nine times on Blue Hills Avenue by a Hartford police officer, Joseph Magnano, while experiencing a mental health crisis on Friday, Feb. 27, according to the Office of the Inspector General.
She called the ambulance that day after his nurse informed her that Steven did not take his medicine.
“Steve Jones was my brother. I’m going to miss him very much…I screamed at the police. He didn’t take his meds and they shot him anyway…If I knew that they were gonna shoot him and kill him, I would not have called 911 or [the] ambulance. I’m just asking you to pray for me and my family…I love you, Steve,” she said.
The Office of the Inspector General also reported that the Emergency Medical Service team came in “within two minutes” and took Steven to the hospital, dying on Sunday, March 3 “from his wounds.”
The State’s Chief Medical Examiner, James R. Gill said that Steven’s cause of death was due to “complications of gunshot wounds involving torso,” and “the manner of his death has been certified as [a] homicide” in the preliminary status report by The Office of The Inspector General on Thursday, March. 6.
NAACP Connecticut State President Scot X. Esdaile said they have received calls from across the nation about how individuals are being dealt with during a mental health crisis.
“It seems to be a very, very serious situation here in Hartford, Connecticut…Where there’s no compassion, no concern, no love…That’s the reason why you all came out like this..because there has to be a change and the people must demand change,” he said.
While he was glad to see the big turnout to the press conference, Esdaile encouraged community members to come as a substance to fight and make sure that freedom and justice comes to the Jones family.
NAACP President Corrie Betts acknowledged that the city has recently been dealing with two police-involved shootings of Jones and Everard Walker, who were having mental health crises.
“Today we stand with the family of Steven Jones, and with a community that is struggling to make sense of these painful situations. These moments are difficult for families and deeply troubling for anyone who believes that when people are in distress, the response should lead to care and safety,” he said.
“The Greater Hartford NAACP is here today standing with this family and with our community. We stand with them, and we refuse to accept [that] this is simply the way things have to be in Hartford.”
He also said that the local, state, and national NAACP organizations are calling for new standards on how mental health emergencies are handled in the city, wanting an immediate expansion of coordinated crisis response teams, where trained mental health professionals are a part of the first response.
“When the default response to mental illness becomes a badge and a gun, that is not a public safety strategy. That is a failure of public health…When someone has a mental health crisis, will they receive help or will they face a gun? We cannot continue down a path with distress leads to dispatch, dispatch leads to confrontation, and confrontation ends with another tragedy that leads families and our communities hurting,” he said.
Greenwich Time reports that “the president of the Hartford Police Union, James Rutkauski, said that the organization fully supports the officer who fatally shot an armed man on Blue Hills Avenue [that] Friday and asked the community for patience as the state’s investigation continues.”
They also report “in a written statement by Rutkauski that the officers should not be at the forefront of incidents that require the response of mental health professionals, ask[ing] for more support and better tools in the statement emailed to CT Insider.”
Lastly, The Time adds that “in his written statement, Rutkauski also wrote that union members extend [their] sincere condolences and deepest sympathy to the family and friends of Steven Jones for the profound loss and tragedy they are enduring.”
Nationally renowned civil rights and personal injury attorney Benjamin Crump, who has been retained by the Jones family said that he and his legal team plan to “explore every possible legal remedy to get full justice for [Steven] Jones.”
Crump challenged Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam, city management, city officials, and the Inspector General – asking them what the repercussions will be for this police involved shooting.
“What’s the consequences for using excessive force and killing one of your brothers in your community who has never had any criminal history. Yeah, he has mental health issues, but God help us all, because [if] we’re going to treat our sisters and brothers who have mental health [challenges like this], God help us all,” he said.
“We are here to talk about the community, not just the legal team, not just the family, but the community demanded answers from the top of the city leadership here in Hartford. Not only making sure we address this matter, but how do you prevent it from happening to…your family member…who is having a mental health crisis,” he said.
Arulampalam issued a public written statement on his Instagram page on Saturday, Feb. 28, which states “that there will be a full review of the officer-involved shooting that took place in the Blue Hills, and [he] will use his office and voice to ensure it is done in a thorough, transparent, and timely manner.”
He also said in his written statement that he believes “the public has a right to clear answers on this [and] he plans to make sure they get them, [acknowledging] as mayor that any officer-involved shooting impacts the trust between residents and the Hartford Police Department.”
“Our city is grieving today. This is a heavy burden for our community to carry, and I want to express my deepest sympathies to the families and neighbors feeling the weight of this pain.”
Lastly, Crump shared his message for the Black community in Hartford who are distraught and sad to see these police shootings continue to happen in their neighborhoods.
“My message is simply this. Now, we are the people who are gonna get justice. If we don’t demand it, it won’t happen and we have to demand justice for Stevie Jones and the other brother [Everard Walker], just as if they were our own flesh and blood. That is what the village must do to protect the village…that we all got to stand up for Stevie, because when we stand up for Stevie, we [are] standing up for justice and we [are] standing up for the community,” he said.
