Man charged with shooting at Norwich officer with AR-15 looks to avoid prison

A 31-year-old Norwich man who police said opened fire with an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle at a Norwich police officer is pursuing an insanity defense to avoid criminal prosecution.A trial started in New London Superior Court on Monday for Andrew O'Lone, a man with a history of hospitalizations for psychiatric treatment who is seeking a verdict of not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect.If Judge Elizabeth Leaming is convinced by evidence presented by his defense, O'Lone would be committed to a high-security psychiatric hospital instead of prison.O'Lone, his long hair covering his face and beard, appeared in court on Monday with his attorney Michael Miller. Miller intends to offer testimony from psychiatrist Dr. Elizabeth Burch on Tuesday about O'Lone's mental illness.State's Attorney Paul Narducci on Monday called on various state and Norwich police officers to testify about evidence that concludes O'Lone was the man who shot and nearly killed Norwich Police Officer Scott Dupointe. The officer was responding to reports of masked man wearing black firing a gun in the area of Westwood Park when police say he was attacked.Norwich Police Sgt. Stephanie Reichard testified that she was at headquarters when the emergency dispatch center was flooded with 911 calls shortly before 10 p.m.One woman from Westwood Park calling to report gunshots in the nearby road and during her call paused for a moment, saying "Oh, there's another (gunshot).""I thought for sure I was dead" Minutes later, dashcam video from Dupointe's cruiser shows O'Lone walking across Dunham Street, peppering the front of Dupointe's Ford Explorer with bullets that struck the bumper, headlight, hood and windshield.Dupointe crouched down below the steering wheel, tried to steer the cruiser toward O'Lone and, after exiting the SUV, returned fire.Police said O'Lone's rifle had a 30-round magazine. In addition to shooting at Dupointe, police said they found gunshot damage to several homes and vehicles in the area of O'Lone's home at 123 Westwood Park."I thought for sure I was dead …" Dupointe said at one point in his interview with police after the incident. An investigation by the Office of the Inspector General determined Dupointe was justified in returning fire.Norwich Police Lt. Steven Schmidt, the evening shift supervisor on the night of the shooting, testified that he arrived at the scene to find Dupointe on his hands and knees outside his vehicle, distraught and disoriented.Dupointe's car was smoking, riddled with bullet holes and there were multiple shell casings in the roadway.A manhunt for O'Lone was underway when Reichard testified Monday that O'Lone's mother called the department from Maryland to report her son wanted to surrender."My son, he's mentally ill and he just shot at police," Susan O'Lone said in a recorded call played in the courtroom. "He wants to turn himself in. He is mentally ill. He probably needs to be in a hospital and not in jail."Faces 65 years in prison O'Lone is facing more than 65 years in prison if convicted of the charges against him, which include attempted murder, attempted first-degree assault, illegal possession of an assault weapon, first-degree reckless endangerment, assault on a public safety officer, and illegal possession of a large-capacity magazine.First hospitalized for psychiatric treatment in his teens, records from the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Service show O'Lone has been was hospitalized on multiple occasions. At Connecticut Valley Hospital, where he was hospitalized in 2015 and 2016, reports show he was diagnosed with bipolar schizoaffective disorder, cannabis dependence, Asperger's Syndrome and attention deficit disorder. O'Lone had been receiving a variety of mental health services, the most recent being between Jan. 2, 2019, to Oct, 6, 2021. He was being treated and prescribed medication from Sound Community Services but was discharged from treatment several weeks prior to the shooting, according to reports available in court records. At the time of the shooting, O'Lone was under a voluntary conservatorship with Probate Court, which does not bar a person from gaining access to firearms. In its report on the officer-involved shooting, the Office Inspector General recommended the Connecticut Probate Court consider examining whether firearm restrictions should apply to "a person sufficiently incapable of caring for him or herself that the person is subject to a voluntary conservatorship."O'Lone was previously found competent to stand trial to the charges he now faces. He remains held on a $1 million bond at Garner Correctional Institution in Newtown. Testimony is expected to continue on Tuesday with a verdict not expected until later this week.g.smith@theday.com