Michael D. Russell was a 30-year-old off-duty police officer who was shot and killed during a confrontation after a softball game in Brooklyn on Thursday, August 2, 1979. Russell had been playing with fellow officers and community members when three men walked across the field and were asked to leave. One of the men, an 18-year-old, produced a .38 caliber revolver and shot a civilian player, killing him.

Officer Russell and other off-duty officers pursued the shooter. During the chase there was an exchange of gunfire and the suspect sustained leg wounds. The pursuit ended in the backyard of a residence on Essex Street, where officers attempted to take the gunman into custody and he was shot in the stomach. He was taken to hospital and died several hours later. The 18-year-old suspect was arrested and later convicted of second-degree murder and manslaughter.

Does anyone have additional details about the game, the location on Essex Street, or witnesses who were there that evening?