Overview
- The deadly exchange occurred Wednesday morning in Newport’s North Anchorage when four Newport officers and three harbormaster personnel approached a vessel that matched a New Jersey theft report, police said.
- Authorities say the man on board ignored commands, fled below deck, armed himself with a firearm and shots were fired; the suspect died and a Newport officer was shot in the leg and treated at the hospital.
- Newport police later identified the deceased as 27-year-old Brendan Norris and said the vessel had been reported stolen from Liberty Harbor Marina in Jersey City on Aug. 22.
- Officials say the boat’s transponder was reportedly disabled after it passed under the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, a detail that has been reported by outlets but not independently confirmed in all accounts.
- All officers who fired have been placed on paid administrative leave and Rhode Island State Police with the attorney general’s office are conducting the investigation while authorities process the vessel and review forensic and body-worn camera evidence.