State police have arrested a Naugatuck police officer who was under criminal investigation for his use of a stun gun during an arrest earlier this month.
Thirty-six-year-old Nicholas Kehoss, a 13-year veteran of the police force, has been charged with intentional cruelty to persons and assault in the third degree.
The incident happened on Oct. 14 during the arrest of 33-year-old Jarrell Day, of Waterbury. The arrest followed a brief pursuit and foot chase after an attempted robbery at Stop & Shop in Naugatuck, according to police.
In police body camera video released on Monday, an officer can be seen approaching the suspect's car and ordering both occupants out of the vehicle. The car takes off, hitting a police cruiser while driving away.
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A second video, taken from Officer Kehoss' body camera, shows Kehoss driving after the fleeing vehicle and finding it crashed into a pole a short distance away.
Kehoss is seen getting out of his police cruiser and chasing Day on foot. He points his stun gun at Day and orders him to stop and get on the ground. Kehoss then deploys his stun gun, dropping Day to the ground.
The officer ordered Day to roll onto his stomach. When Day didn't comply, Kehoss electrified the stun gun again. He did so one more time after asking the suspect to put his hands behind his back.
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According to Chief Colin McAllister, during a review of the body camera video, concerns were raised about the use of the stun gun during the arrest.
“In our department, whenever there’s a use of force, it automatically triggers an internal review. That internal review process moves up the chain of command. Early on in that process, we identified several concerns with this use of force,” Chief McAllister said during a news conference Monday.
The chief referred the matter to the Waterbury State's Attorney's Office. The state's attorney then referred the case to state police for criminal investigation.
Investigators report that Naugatuck police's own policy says "less lethal force may not be used against any person engaged in passive resistance."
Local NAACP representatives say they'll diligently investigate the incident, telling us they are grateful Naugatuck police self-reported the incident and contacted them.
"We have to take these hard questions. We have to answer these hard situations that have arisen in our community. And we have to examine those," NAACP Greater Waterbury Branch President Wendy Tyson-Wood said.
Kehoss was been placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation.
State police released information about the charges on Tuesday afternoon. Bond for Kehoss was set at $50,000 and he is due in court on Nov. 8.
Kehoss' police work was also under the microscope in 2020 after he fired shots at a car during a traffic stop. The man inside was not hurt and the inspector general found him justified in the use of deadly force.
In Kehoss' personnel file, other questions were raised about his performance over the past decade. In a letter, the chief called out the officer's "extensive disciplinary history."
Just last year, he was suspended for five days for violating the pursuit policy and for another pursuit issue, he was demoted from the rank of sergeant to officer.
Day was arrested and is facing several charges, including robbery, attempted assault, and disobeying the signal of an officer.
Chief McAllister said Day did not require medical attention and did not file a complaint about the arrest.
