The Town of West Hartford is being sued by a shooting victim. Wilfredo Texidor blames the West Hartford Police Department for his injuries that happened during a highly publicized crime.
Two years ago, the SWAT team showed up to a home on Abbotsford Avenue after Wilfredo Texidor was shot in the neck.
He filed a lawsuit against the Town of West Hartford and three members of the West Hartford Police Department, and cited negligence.
“I’m concerned about any lawsuit against the town because at the very least it costs the town money to defend,” said Joseph O’Brien, with the Town Corporation Counsel.
He told NBC Connecticut the lawsuit was delivered to Town Hall on Thursday, and Wilfredo Texidor was asking for more than $15,000 for damages.
On March 29th, 20011, Wilfredo Texidor was at his aunt’s house, when she called police and said a group of teens from Conard High School showed up to bully her daughter, and they were gang members.
The report from that day showed the call was classified as a non-emergency. When police didn’t show up an hour later, she called for help again.
Wilfredo Texidor eventually walked outside before police arrived to confront the group, and that’s when he was shot. The teen who pulled the trigger was sentenced to three years behind bars.
“It was absolutely not the fault of the West Hartford Police Department,” Joseph O’Brien added.
The town reviewed the case a while back, and concluded the response should not have taken as long as it did. West Hartford’s Corporation Counsel said that slow response had nothing to do with the shooting, and claimed the lawsuit had no merit.
“It's claiming negligence on part of the West Hartford Police Department and it’s claiming that the negligence caused Mr. Texidor to be shot,” O’Brien explained.
O’Brien told NBC Connecticut the Town of West Hartford would fight the lawsuit, and it could take 3 to 4 years to resolve.
Wilfredo Texidor and his attorney could not be reached for comment.
