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$8.2 MILLION FOR OFF-DUTY COP SHOOTING

New York City to Pay $8.2 Million Over Shooting by Off-Duty Officer

An off-duty New York City police officer fired at a car, striking a passenger at least six times, at this intersection in Pelham, N.Y., in 2014.
By CHRISTOPHER MELE

New York City will pay more than $8 million to settle a lawsuit stemming from an unprovoked drunken shooting by an off-duty police officer that seriously injured one man and traumatized another, the city confirmed on Friday.

Under the settlement, Joseph Felice of New Rochelle, N.Y., who was struck by gunfire six times, will receive $6.9 million and a friend of his, Robert Borrelli, who was with him during the shooting but not hit, will receive $1.3 million.

Settling the case was “in the best interests of the city,” a spokesman for the city’s Law Department said.

The shooting occurred on April 29, 2014, shortly before midnight, in Pelham, just north of the Bronx. The officer, Brendan Cronin, had been drinking alcohol — at least 10 drinks, by his own admission, including whiskey shots and beer, according to the lawsuit — at a bar on City Island after a day of tactical police training in the Bronx, officials said.

Mr. Borrelli, also of New Rochelle, was taking Mr. Felice to his home after they had played in a hockey game. They were stopped at a traffic light at the intersection of Sixth and Lincoln Avenues in Pelham when, in what an official at the time described as a “completely random” attack, Mr. Cronin fired at least 14 shots, hitting Mr. Felice six times in the back, shoulder, arm and chest.

One bullet remains lodged in Mr. Felice’s chest, and it was more than six months before he could sit in the front seat of a car as a passenger, according to the lawsuit. His lawyer, Randolph M. McLaughlin, said in an interview that his client had instructed him not to discuss his current medical condition.

In a statement, Mr. McLaughlin said, “Hopefully the city’s settlement demonstrates the beginning of a zero-tolerance policy for alcohol abuse by its police officers, particularly when they are in possession of their service weapons or driving cars.”

Mr. Cronin, a six-year veteran of the Police Department, pleaded guilty to attempted murder in 2015. He was sentenced to nine years in prison.

Benjamin Weiser contributed reporting.

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