On a summer evening in Hartford, Connecticut, the life of 33-year-old Timothy Burt Jr., a Black / African American male, was tragically cut short. On June 11, 2017, the sound of gunfire pierced the air on Enfield Street. Responding to a ShotSpotter alert, police discovered Burt unresponsive, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was swiftly transported to a nearby hospital but was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival.
The investigation into Burt's death quickly focused on
24-year-old Samuel Stevenson. Detectives learned that Burt and Stevenson had a history of altercations. Just two days before the fatal shooting, the two men had been involved in a physical fight near the corner of Greenfield and Enfield Streets. This earlier, unreported incident was considered a significant factor leading to the deadly confrontation. City surveillance cameras had captured a large disturbance involving both Burt and Stevenson in that same area.
On June 20, 2017, nine days after the shooting, Hartford police arrested Samuel Stevenson. He was charged with murder and criminal possession of a firearm. During the arrest, authorities also recovered a firearm that they believed to be the weapon used to kill Burt. Stevenson was held on a $1.5 million bond. In October of 2018, Stevenson entered an Alford plea to the murder charge. This type of plea meant that while he did not admit guilt, he acknowledged that the prosecution had enough evidence to likely secure a conviction. He faced a sentence of over 32 years in prison.
