Latest news with #NBCConnecticut
New York Post
17-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Man convicted in 1999 killing of 8-year-old boy and mother in Connecticut released under Biden-clemency order
A man convicted in connection with the heartless murder of an 8-year-old boy and his mother in Bridgeport, Conn., has been released from prison after being granted clemency by former President Joe Biden. Adrian Peeler, 49, conspired with his brother Russell Peeler Jr. to shoot and kill 8-year-old Leroy 'B.J.' Brown and his mother Karen Clarke in 1999 and was sentenced to a combined 60 years in state and federal prison. 4 Adrian Peeler, now 49, was convicted for his role in the killing of 8-year-old Leroy 'BJ' Brown and his mother Karen Clarke in their Bridgeport apartment building to prevent them from testifying against his drug-dealing brother. Advertisement After completing his state sentence in January 2022, Peeler was granted clemency by the outgoing Biden administration for his 35-year federal sentence on separate drug charges, which would have had him wearing prison stripes until at least 2033, NBC Connecticut reported. The release has shocked state lawmakers, including liberal Democrat and Biden supporter Senator Richard Blumenthal, who was Connecticut's attorney general at the time of the ghastly crime. 'It seems to me that someone dropped the ball here to let this person get released,' Blumenthal said in a statement, the CT Post reported. Advertisement 'This was a really vicious murder that changed our laws. It also highlights how we need to take a look at the pardon system to see how it can be improved,' the senator added. 4 Even political allies have called out former President Biden's pardon of Peeler as a miscarriage of justice. AP Little BJ and Clarke, his mother, were slated to testify against Peeler's drug-dealing brother, who was on trial for killing Clarke's boyfriend Rudolf Snead, a fellow drug dealer, according to the Hartford Courant. BJ was prepared to testify that he was in the car when Russell Peeler Jr. shot Snead in a drive-by shooting in 1997. Advertisement But before that could happen, the Peeler brothers ambushed the mother and son at their Bridgeport apartment – shooting the boy to death at the top of the stairs and leaving his mother in a pool of blood in the bedroom where she attempted to call for help. 4 Leroy 'BJ' Brown was in the car when Russell Peeler Jr. shot his mother's boyfriend in a 1997 drive-by shooting. WFSB Both Peelers were charged by the state with capital felony and murder. Despite Adrian Peeler being the alleged shooter, a jury convicted him only of murder conspiracy, NBC Connecticut reported. Advertisement The horrific slayings inspired the Nutmeg State to create its own witness protection program. 4 Karen Clarke was gunned down in her bedroom as she attempted to call for help for her dying son. WFSB The family of Clarke and BJ was apoplectic when Peelers' release was announced. 'We've been blindsided. Where is the justice for my family?' Oswald Clarke, Karen's brother, told the CT Examiner. 'It's like we are hearing of BJ and Karen's deaths all over again — but this time their killer is going free.' Peeler previously sought to have his sentence reduced under 2018's First Step Act, but was excoriated by a judge in 2021 for lacking remorse. 'I take full responsibility for all my actions that led me to be here today,' Peeler told Judge Janet Bond Arterton during a 2021 hearing. 'I sold drugs to the community… It is something I think of every day,' he said. Advertisement Judge Arterton called the convicted conspirator out for failing to address the killings. 'Shockingly missing was an expression of remorse or apology to the families of Miss Clarke and B.J.,' the judge said. 'He didn't turn around to face them and simply say, 'I'm sorry.''
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Shooting at Connecticut mall leaves multiple injured, with shooter on the run: Police
Police in Waterbury, Connecticut, say a shooting at a mall on Tuesday afternoon has injured multiple people. According to a Facebook post from the Waterbury Police Department, a shooting reported at the Brass Mill Center left multiple people injured. 'Multiple victims have been reported, and law enforcement is actively on scene,' police said. 'We urge the public to avoid the area to allow emergency personnel to respond effectively and ensure everyone's safety.' According to reporting from local news station NBC Connecticut, five people were transported to area hospitals with gunshot wounds, but police would not tell the station the severity of their wounds. Multiple media outlets reported that the shooter was still on the loose. The Waterbury Police Department did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment on Tuesday. Witness Javon Turner told CBS News that he heard the gunshots. "A girl got shot. She was losing a lot of blood," he said. "It was crazy, and I tell everybody, 'Get out of here, let's go.' I tried to get everybody out of here in safety." Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at and follow him on X @fern_cerv_. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Shooting at Connecticut mall leaves multiple injured: Police
USA Today
28-05-2025
- USA Today
Shooting at Connecticut mall leaves multiple injured, with shooter on the run: Police
Shooting at Connecticut mall leaves multiple injured, with shooter on the run: Police Police in Waterbury, Connecticut, say a shooting at a mall on Tuesday afternoon has injured multiple people. According to a Facebook post from the Waterbury Police Department, a shooting reported at the Brass Mill Center left multiple people injured. 'Multiple victims have been reported, and law enforcement is actively on scene,' police said. 'We urge the public to avoid the area to allow emergency personnel to respond effectively and ensure everyone's safety.' According to reporting from local news station NBC Connecticut, five people were transported to area hospitals with gunshot wounds, but police would not tell the station the severity of their wounds. Multiple media outlets reported that the shooter was still on the loose. The Waterbury Police Department did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment on Tuesday. Witness Javon Turner told CBS News that he heard the gunshots. "A girl got shot. She was losing a lot of blood," he said. "It was crazy, and I tell everybody, 'Get out of here, let's go.' I tried to get everybody out of here in safety." Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
One person hospitalized after Connecticut home explosion
SUFFIELD, Conn. (WWLP) – In Suffield, one person is recovering after a fire at a home on Second Street. Springfield man wanted in Connecticut arrested at Hampshire Mall NBC Connecticut states that crews were sent to a home on Second Street around 3:00 p.m. for a report of a propane explosion. Fire officials state there was also a fire at the back of the home that was put out. The home appears to be undergoing renovations or a remodel, and it is unknown at this time if the explosion was connected to that. One person was taken to the hospital, and their condition is unknown at this time. The fire is currently under investigation. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Yahoo
Connecticut mom's remains found 2 years after she vanished in Japan
The remains of a Connecticut woman who went missing on a hike in Japan two years ago have been recovered, her family announced. Pattie Wu-Murad disappeared in April 2023 during a solo hiking trip in central Japan. Despite an extensive search around the Kumano Kodo Trail, which included American and Japanese search and rescue teams, the U.S. Embassy and the FBI, no trace of her was found. In September 2024, more than a year and a half after her disappearance, a fisherman found Wu-Murad's backpack and one hiking shoe near a stream on a different trail from where her family originally believed she was hiking, the family said. Japanese officials launched another search in that area, but no further evidence was found. Earlier this year, a member of the original U.S. search team who was in Japan in April, retraced the area where Wu-Murad's backpack was found and discovered several other of her personal items and what appeared to be a femur, her family said in a post on social media. On May 9, the family was told that DNA testing using a sample from Wu-Murad's daughter confirmed the remains were a match. "Although we had tried to prepare ourselves for this outcome, the finality of this news is heartbreaking," her family said in a Facebook post. "It offers a measure of closure, but many questions remain unanswered, including the exact circumstances and cause of Pattie's death. We now begin the process of working through international protocols to bring her remains home." Wu-Murad's family said they hope more evidence will be found to shed light on what happened. "There'll be more people on that trail over the coming months and years, and maybe they'll come across more evidence," her husband, Kirk Murad, told NBC Connecticut. The family expressed their gratitude for the search teams, volunteers and outpouring of support they received over the past two years. "Pattie was an incredible woman whose love and friendship touched many lives," they said. "While we are devastated, we are also humbled by the global community that rallied to help find her. We will continue to honor her memory with love and gratitude in our hearts." Raw Video: Mexican navy training ship hits Brooklyn Bridge Italy's Trulli: From Past to Present Will the House Republican budget be a sinking ship in the Senate?
