Wrongful death suit against former troopers in Groton suicide is settled
Sep. 29—A decade-old wrongful death lawsuit that claimed the actions of four former state police troopers provoked the suicide of a Groton firefighter in 2012 has been settled with a $165,000 payout from the state.
Trent LaLima, the Hartford-based lawyer representing the estate of Timothy Devine, the 30-year-old Poquonnock Bridge firefighter who shot and killed himself on July 24, 2012, while being shot by police with non-lethal munitions, said the settlement was worked out three months ago.
Court records show the lawsuit, which names former state troopers Louis J. Fusaro Jr., Steven Rief, Michael Avery and Kevin Cook, was officially withdrawn on June 18. Fusaro is now the chief of the Groton Town Police Department.
The state Attorney General's Office released the terms of the settlement on Friday. The settlement includes an agreement by Michael Devine — Timothy Devine's father and the administrator for his son's estate — to withdraw the lawsuit.
There is no admission of wrongdoing by any of the troopers named in the suit, which "represents only a compromise of disputed issues of fact and law and reflects the desire to avoid further litigation," according to the settlement.
LaLima declined to discuss the terms of the agreement but said it was "an outcome where the Devine family feels Tim's loss was valued."
"I'm glad that they have some semblance of closure. It's been an extremely long road for this case," LaLima said.
Timothy Devine shot himself at the University of Connecticut's Avery Point campus in Groton a day after several teenage boys gave statements to police accusing Devine, who owned Crossfit gym in Groton City, of touching them in a sexually inappropriate manner. Investigators called Devine to talk about the allegations but police said he refused and threatened suicide.
Police would later find Devine, at 9:55 p.m. on July 24, 2012, near the water at Avery Point with a gun to his head. Officers from several police departments surrounded Devine. Negotiators talked to Devine for more than three hours. Devine denied the allegations against him but declined to put down the gun, reports show.
The state police Emergency Services Unit, with about two dozen troopers, arrived shortly after midnight. Devine's brother and father had also arrived but allege police did not allow them to speak to Timothy Devine. By 3 a.m., in a plan to disarm Devine, troopers fired several barrages of plastic impact batons at Devine, who told troopers "don't make me do this," and eventually shot himself, reports show.
The lawsuit alleges the troopers' actions were "unreasonable, excessive and unnecessary," and they had used excessive force when it was not needed. The troopers initially claimed qualified immunity, which shields state employees from being sued for acting in their official capacities. The agreement reached with the state explicitly states that the settlement is not a waiver of sovereign immunity.
The state Supreme Court in 2023 dismissed an appeal by the state troopers of an Appellate Court decision and sent the case back to New London Superior Court.
LaLima said after a judge in New London rejected a motion by the Attorney General's Office to dismiss the case — a ruling he said favored the Devine family — more serious discussions of a settlement got underway.
Michael Devine could not be reached for comment for this report.
Fusaro, reached by phone on Friday, was the commander of the state police Emergency Services Unit when it responded to Groton on the morning of Devine's suicide.
Fusaro called the circumstances "unfortunate and tragic."
"These are volatile, complex confrontational situations," Fusaro said. "Any time there is a loss of life, it's tragic. We always wish to gain that voluntary compliance with people. When you have armed individuals who are not compliant, there are limited options. It had an outcome that everyone would have preferred had been different."
Elizabeth Benton, a spokeswomen for the Attorney General's Office, said, "We are pleased this matter has been resolved in the best interest of all parties."
