Nigel Powell, 16, died in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on October 11, 2021, of a gunshot wound to the head sustained inside a Valley Avenue residence. He was taken to St. Vincent’s Medical Center, where he later died. Initial reports suggested a self-inflicted wound, but witness interviews changed the account.

Three other juveniles were in the room when the firearm discharged. Interviews indicated one of those teens, later identified as 16-year-old Elijah Reid, was holding and dancing with the gun when it fired and struck Powell. Reid initially told detectives Powell had been examining the gun but later admitted he accidentally shot his friend. The weapon was a 9mm Smith & Wesson that Reid had purchased.

On October 18, 2021, Reid turned himself in and was arrested on first-degree manslaughter with a firearm and other firearm offenses; a judge ordered he be tried as an adult. Are there readers who knew Nigel or have information about the night on Valley Avenue?