Connecticut lawmaker wants to ban police from shooting at vehicles

May 16, 2019 12:00 am • Last Updated: May 16, 2019 4:42 pm

By By DAVE COLLINS

This still image from police dash camera video released Friday, May 3, 2019, by the Hartford State's Attorney shows Police Officer Layau Eulizier pointing his weapon at a car being driven at him by Anthony Jose Vega Cruz during an attempted traffic stop April 20 in Wethersfield, Conn. Eulizier shot through the windshield, striking Vega Cruz, of Wethersfield, who died two days later at a hospital. (Hartford State's Attorney via AP)

HARTFORD (AP) — A Connecticut lawmaker is proposing a ban on police firing their guns to stop vehicles, in response to an officer's fatal shooting of an unarmed man who tried to flee a traffic stop.

Democratic state Sen. Gary Winfield, of New Haven, said Thursday that the proposal will be part of new legislation to limit police use of force and increase police accountability.

Winfield also wants to prohibit officers in many cases from stepping in front of vehicles, which is what happened in the April 20 fatal shooting by Wethersfield officer Layau Eulizier.

Police say Eulizier fired at the windshield of a car driven toward him by 18-year-old Anthony Jose Vega Cruz, who later died.

The shooting and another recent officer-involved shooting in New Haven that wounded a woman sparked protests.

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