On the night of Sunday, November 8, 2020, Henry Walter Paulin, a 45-year-old Black / African American male, was inside a convenience store on Willow Street in Waterbury, Connecticut, when an argument broke out. The loud discussion between several people escalated, leading to multiple gunshots being fired inside the establishment. In the ensuing chaos, everyone fled the store except for Paulin, who had been struck by a bullet in the abdomen and collapsed on the floor.
Emergency services
were called to the scene just before 11 p.m. and found Paulin unconscious but still breathing. He was immediately transported to a local hospital for medical attention. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, Henry Paulin succumbed to his injuries and passed away in the early hours of Monday, November 9, 2020. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner later confirmed the cause of death as a gunshot wound to the torso and ruled the manner of death a homicide. A second individual, a 33-year-old man, also sustained gunshot wounds to his abdomen and right arm during the incident but had left the store before police arrived. He was later found on a nearby street and taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The investigation into the fatal shooting led authorities to identify a suspect in the case. In February 2021, James Gardner, 38, was apprehended in Roanoke, Virginia. He was subsequently extradited back to Connecticut to face multiple charges, including murder and first-degree assault, in connection with the death of Henry Paulin and the injury of the second victim. Gardner was held on a $2 million bond.
