Pubdate: Tues, 21 Sep 1999 Source: New Haven Register (CT) Copyright: 1999, New Haven Register Contact: http://www.ctcentral.com/cgi-bin/w3com/start?ctcentral+FrontPage Forum: http://www.ctcentral.com/ Author: Michelle Tuccitto, Register Staff COCAINE FOUND IN VICTIM OF COP SHOOTING NORTH BRANFORD -- Autopsy toxicology results on the West Haven woman fatally shot by a North Branford police officer July 13 show she had cocaine in her system, sources said. But Victoria Cooper's family members and their attorney say that the angle of the bullet wound, not her alleged drug use, is the real issue. Police Officer Michael Breen fatally shot Cooper when she allegedly drove her car at him in a life-threatening manner during a traffic stop on Route 80. Cooper, 41, was a passenger in a Camaro which Breen stopped about 1:30 a.m. after he determined the vehicle owner's license was suspended. The driver, Cooper's boyfriend, Steven Guerette, 41, of Wallingford, got out of the car. After a search, Breen found traces of cocaine on his person, police said. Guerette fled on foot. Breen pursued him but lost him. As Breen was making his way back to his cruiser, Cooper took the wheel of the Camaro and started to drive at the officer, police said. Breen told investigators that he saw Cooper driving toward him, so he fired two shots. While the first glanced off the car's hood, the second shattered the driver's side window and struck Cooper in the chest cavity, killing her. Guerette, 41, of Wallingford, confirmed that he and Cooper did cocaine together the night of the shooting. Jack Kelly of Orange, who is Breen's attorney, said this is important to his client's case. "It confirms my belief that this consumption of illegal drugs prior to her contact with my client helps explain in part why she did what she did," said Kelly. "The good judgment one might have under normal circumstances is weakened." Cocaine is a stimulant, and its possible effects include increased alertness, excitation, paranoia, increased pulse rate and impaired judgment, according to anti-drug literature presented by the Connecticut Statewide Narcotics Task Force and the U.S. Department of Justice's Drug Enforcement Administration. According to the Chief State Medical Examiner's Office, Cooper died of a single gunshot wound to the chest area. Toxicology results are finished, but an office spokesperson said they aren't available to the public. Joanne Cowan, Cooper's sister-in-law, said the bullet passed from Cooper's left side to her right side, puncturing both lungs and her aorta. "I would be surprised if she had cocaine in her system, but I've only read the autopsy report, not the toxicology report," said Cowan. "Regardless, the autopsy results show that he wasn't standing in front of the car, so it wasn't like she was going to run him down. Whether she was doing drugs or not is beside the point." Kelly expressed confidence that the investigation and reconstruction of the incident will show that Breen acted appropriately. "The officer was in genuine fear of his life," said Kelly. "Those two shots were fired in rapid succession. The officer did what the law permitted him to do and he acted within the law." New Haven State's Attorney Michael Dearington declined to comment. State Police spokesman Lt. Ralph Carpenter said the autopsy and toxicology reports won't be available to the public until the investigation is complete. Cooper's family's attorney, David Rosen of the New Haven-based law firm of Rosen and Dolan, would neither confirm nor deny whether cocaine was in Cooper's system. "What concerns me is that there is an officer on the road while there is still a criminal investigation," Rosen said. While Breen was put on desk duty immediately after the shooting, he returned to his regular duties earlier this month due to a police department staffing shortage. "We are still waiting to get all the evidence," Rosen said. "My understanding of what the medical examiner had to say is that the bullet entered her side. From what I've seen, this young woman was shot by the police officer when she had already driven halfway past him." - --- MAP posted-by: Don Beck