Considering all the Bristol Police Department has been through, reaction to Thursday night’s shooting has been strong and swift.
After a woman fired several gunshots inside the Bristol Police Department lobby Thursday night, there has been strong and swift reaction.
Frustration and anger stems from the timing. Coincidentally, it was almost exactly one year ago - Oct. 12, 2022 - that two Bristol Police officers were killed in the line of duty.
The Bristol police lobby was not a working space on Friday. It was a crime scene.
Windows are boarded up and walls penetrated by gunshots. While an officer did return gunfire, no one was hurt. Instead, the accused, 51-year-old Suzanne Laprise, of Plainville, was subdued with a taser.
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“Our police, once again, have handled themselves with such grace and dignity, and I couldn’t be more proud of our police heroes,” Bristol Mayor Jeff Caggiano said.
Shining brightly, day and night, blue lights have radiated support for Bristol police for nearly a year. Today, those lights continued to gleam, around the city.
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For a community still grieving the horrific deaths of Lt. Dustin Demonte and Sgt. Alex Hamzy, what transpired Thursday was hard to accept.
“Terrified. I was mortified. I mean I just can’t believe it,” Darlene Hovhanessian said.
“When somebody can go to a police station and open fire in a police station, just makes you wonder how safe people are,” Dave Clavette said.
Scattered around the state are signs supporting Bristol police. The designer, who sold signs raising $36,000 for the Demonte and Hamzy families, reacted to the recent events.
“It’s just sad that it happened so close to the anniversary last year,” Mike McAdam, owner of Sign Source, said.
Since the 2022 police tragedy, Dunphy’s Ice Cream has raised $35,000 for the police department. Owner and former police commissioner Kevin Fuller said the entire community is devastated by this cruel coincidence.
“We didn’t need another tragedy like this,” Fuller said. “This is a tragedy, too.”
To show support, Mayor Caggiano is asking people to continue lighting up the city and once again bring out their blue lights. He’s also encouraging people to attend a candlelight vigil for Demonte and Hamzy outside the police department at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 12.
“Our police right now need 100% support from the citizens of Bristol,” Caggiano said. “I’m sure they’re going to show them that and I actually hope that spreads much wider.”
