People are still being asked to answer for the death of a mother in New Britain in 2023 who was hit by a police car.
While honoring her and asking for justice, her family held a party on her birthday, Sunday.
Last year, a report from the state’s attorney cleared the cop, who was driving, of any wrongdoing.
Katherine Colon’s family and friends got together with flowers to wish her a happy birthday.
Barbara Colon’s oldest daughter, Maribel Rodriguez, said, “She would have been 42 today, but sadly she was killed.”
When Colon was crossing West Main Street in September 2023, he was hit by Officer Connor Reinsch’s New Britain police car. Reinsch was on his way to a case of burglary.
To remember and celebrate Colon’s life, his family held a community birthday cookout with free food, harm reduction supplies, and other fun things for the whole family to do.
His youngest daughter said that the event is meant to show what Colon did for the city’s people.
“Katherine cared about the neighborhood. “It doesn’t surprise me that these people know and love her because she was involved with her community every day,” Daniah Sawyer said.
According to a report from the state’s attorney, both were partly to blame for the accident, but Reinsch should not be charged with a crime.
The report said Colon was at fault because he was high, wearing dark clothes, and walking slowly into the path of the police car. The report also said Reinsch was going almost twice the speed limit and didn’t have any emergency lights or sirens on. He also said he was sidetracked before the crash because he saw someone on the side of the road.
The detective said they would not press criminal charges because they could not prove them.
The daughters of Colon said they don’t agree with the results and will keep calling for responsibility.
“We’re still asking for that.” “That will never change for our family, and since the courts and the city of New Britain don’t want to do what’s right, we’ll find other ways to get justice for her,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez said her event in Central Park ran into trouble because the city and she couldn’t agree on a permit.
“New Britain Parks and Rec slowed down, told us at the last minute that they couldn’t hold a commission meeting, and tried to charge us fees,” she said.
A spokeswoman for the City of New Britain, Rachel Zaniewski, said that the group did not have a permit and that Rodriguez turned down an offer to hold the event at a better park because the group wanted to grill and have a bounce house.
That wasn’t needed for the event in Central Park to go on. Rodriguez said they wanted to make a point.
“Everything here came from the community.” The city did not give us any money or anything like that. To show what it means to be there for each other without judging, Rodriguez said.
Reinsch is back to working full time for the New Britain Police Department, according to Zaniewski.
There is also a civil suit that the family has brought against the city for wrongful death that is still going on.
