Hartford police released bodycam and dashcam footage showing Officer Joseph Magnano firing nine shots at Steven Jones, a 55-year-old Black man experiencing an acute mental health crisis. The incident occurred Friday morning when Jones approached officers with a large knife after repeatedly ignoring commands to drop the weapon.

Jones remained in critical condition following the shooting, which marked the second police shooting of a Hartford resident in nine days. The confrontation began when a family member called 911 reporting Jones had cut himself and was armed with a knife. Officers attempted to subdue Jones with Tasers multiple times, but the devices proved ineffective.

The 12-minute encounter escalated as Jones chased officers around their vehicles before turning toward Magnano. Despite repeated warnings and attempts at de-escalation by multiple officers, including Officer James Prignano's calm appeals to "think about it" and drop the knife, Magnano fired when Jones walked steadily toward him in the middle of Blue Hills Avenue and Euclid Street.