The Attorney General’s Shooting Response Team is conducting an investigation into the circumstances surrounding a fatal police-involved shooting involving the Ocean County Regional SWAT Team. The decedent is Patrick Fennell, 57, of Sycamore Drive, Little Egg Harbor Township.
According to the preliminary investigation, the Little Egg Harbor Township Police Department responded Saturday night to a 911 call from Fennell’s wife reporting that her husband was behaving in a strange manner. She reported that he was in the basement of their home, where he had weapons, and she heard gunfire. After the township police arrived at the residence on Sycamore Drive, Fennell came out of the residence and fled into a wooded area. Police officers reported that they saw Fennell holding a handgun when he left the residence. Township police called for assistance from the Ocean County Regional SWAT Team.
The SWAT team arrived and officers spread out to contain Fennell in a wooded area. At approximately 10:30 p.m., officers confronted Fennell, who allegedly was armed with a handgun. A member of the SWAT team fired multiple rounds, striking Fennell. Police recovered a handgun at the scene of the shooting. Fennell was pronounced dead at the scene.
No further details of the shooting are being released at this time because of the ongoing investigation.
The incident remains under investigation by the Attorney General’s Shooting Response Team. Under Attorney General Directives, the Shooting Response Team, made up of deputy attorneys general, detectives of the Division of Criminal Justice, and detectives of the State Police Major Crime Unit, are dispatched to the scene to handle investigations of shootings involving state troopers or officers employed by county prosecutors as detectives/investigators or members of county SWAT teams and task forces.
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I feel for the officer its no fun taking a human life, thank you for putting your life on the line to protect us
The wife called police for help. Her husband was then killed by those she called for help. There had to be a better way. Having him come out of the room with weapons in it and with out knowing the police were in the home may have had a different out come. I’m sure the way it went down the officer felt he had no choice. Very sad for all involved.