Bristol D.A.: Former New Bedford Fire Chief’s Fatal Shooting Was ‘Justified’

FAIRHAVEN (WBSM) — The Bristol County District Attorneys’ Office has released a detailed report on the fatal shooting by police of former New Bedford Acting Fire Chief Paul Coderre, Jr. in Fairhaven last December.

The report, which was the result of numerous eyewitness interviews and review of body cam, dash cam and cell phone footage as well as a review of each responding department’s use of force policy, determined that the shooting was “justified as the result of Mr. Coderre’s actions” and that the officers involved committed no crime.

The report also paints Coderre, through witness testimony, as suffering through a “psychotic break” brought on by both a new pain medication and his ongoing legal situation with the City of New Bedford regarding his pension after his January 2022 firing over allegedly lying about a work-related injury.

What Happened Leading Up to the Shooting of Paul Coderre

According to the report, Coderre began the day on December 29, 2023 by having breakfast at Jake’s Diner in Fairhaven with a fellow member of the Bristol County Fire Chiefs Association. That person said “Coderre was acting normally and spoke of winning his recent civil service case,” the report states.

Coderre, 55, had been appointed Acting Fire Chief in New Bedford in December 2018. He was then fired in January 2022 for allegedly lying about work-related injuries.

Coderre went on injury leave in August 2020 for back-related injuries and remained out of work while collecting full pay, amassing more than $208,000 in salary during that time..

Believing he was being dishonest about the extent of his injuries, the City of New Bedford hired an investigator to follow Coderre and the investigator recorded video of Coderre moving a nearly 200-pound smoker out of the back of a pickup truck. That investigation led to Coderre's firing.

Coderre filed for retirement three days before his termination hearing; the City asked the retirement board to reconsider awarding him a pension, and then later appealed the board's decision to keep his retirement in place.

Coderre had won a ruling by the Civil Service Commission after two years of litigation against the City of New Bedford in order to keep his pension after his firing. The commission had determined his termination and denial of pension was unlawful.

After breakfast, Coderre met with a group of fellow members of the same association for lunch and cocktails at the Bayside Lounge in Fairhaven, which the report states was a regular weekly occurrence.

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During the lunch, another witness – who is described in the report as a retired former New Bedford fire chief – said Coderre was “not his normal self,” according to the report, and that he was “upset about a recent decision by the City of New Bedford regarding his termination.”

The witness told investigators that “at some point during lunch, Mr. Coderre ordered a round of Jameson shots and stated it was in memory of a former Somerset Fire Department Chief. That chief died from a suicide in January 2020.”

By 3 p.m. and after a few more drinks, Coderre ordered another round of shots. That’s when the witness contacted Coderre’s wife and said he “would need help getting home due to his drinking and mental state.”

The witness who had attended breakfast with Coderre also said Coderre had received a call from his attorney during lunch that the City was appealing the Civil Service decision, and that it caused Coderre to get “a little pissed off.”

When Coderre’s wife arrived at the Bayside Lounge to pick him up, he was upset by her presence and that someone had called her. She took his keys from him when he wasn’t looking, and then tried to get him to leave in her vehicle, but he instead punched out the window of his truck to try to get at spare keys he kept inside, injuring his arm and hand in the process.

Coderre’s wife told investigators that after he punched out the window, she asked him, “What did you do?” and he then “raised his arms with clenched fists and gritted his teeth in anger.”

“Mr. Coderre became verbally aggressive and began swearing at her,” the report states. “This was highly concerning and unusual to Mrs. Coderre as she told investigators that her husband had never spoken to her in that manner.”

Coderre also accused the witness who had gone to breakfast with him of being the one who called his wife, and began to strangle the man, slamming him into the truck. He eventually let go.

Another firefighter friend came out of the Bayside and asked what was going on. The report says Coderre “became more agitated and ‘went at’ both of his friends.” He then pulled out his firearm, which he was licensed to carry, and pointed at Mrs. Coderre. When told by his friends to put the gun away, he fired a shot into the air.

Mrs. Coderre stated to investigators that as police arrived on the scene, she heard her husband say “I’m going to die today.”

Coderre Was Acting Out of Character and Medication May Have Played a Part

“Mrs. Coderre stated that she had never seen her husband behave that way,” the report says. “Mrs. Coderre explained that her husband was not normally an angry drunk, so his behavior was atypical. Mrs. Coderre believed that Mr. Coderre had a psychotic break.”

She also told investigators that the two-year battle with the City of New Bedford over his firing and his pension, as well as the publicity over it, was “stressful and upsetting to Mr. Coderre.”

She also said he was recently informed he could no longer have any surgeries to help with his back problems and was instead referred to pain management, which prescribed him medications to help with the pain.

“Mr. Coderre had recently switched medications,” the report says. “Mrs. Coderre noted that since the medication switch, her husband seemed more agitated.”

The Incident Played Out on Multiple Videos

Cell phone videos from the scene obtained by investigators showed Coderre choking his friend and pushing him into the truck. It also captured him telling his friend, “if they called the cops here, I’m going to kill some cops.”

Dash cam footage from an arriving Fairhaven Police cruiser showed Coderre “appeared to have his right hand on his right hip and his left hand extended outward.” He was telling officers “there is no coming back from this” and “I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

He then made suicidal statements such as “someone else decided this for me, this is how it is going to be” and “this isn’t going to end well for me. I know this isn’t going to end well for me.”

“Mr. Coderre was especially adamant that he was not going to jail and that the police were not going to take his firearms,” the report says.

He made other statements such as he “was dying tonight” and he knew the situation would end “one of two ways, you guys are going to shoot me or I’m going to shoot me” and that “this is how this is going to end.”

READ MORE: Former New Bedford Fire Chief Shot and Killed, Police Officer Injured

A Mattapoisett Police body cam captured him saying “we’re not going home” and “I’m either going to put a bullet in my head or you’re going to shoot me.”

Coderre repeatedly told officers he had no intention of harming any of them.

“He told police, ‘Don’t lose sleep over this, this is my decision,’” the report says. “Mr. Coderre became increasingly insistent that he was either going to kill himself or force the police to shoot him.”

When attempts to talk him down by both law enforcement and friends failed, police attempted less lethal means to subdue him.

They attempted multiple times to hit him with a Taser, and Coderre pulled the probes off his body. A BolaWrap device, which would have restrained him, failed to wrap around him. Another officer then struck him with a beanbag shot from a rifle, “but it had little to no effect.” The rifle then failed on subsequent attempts to strike him with a bean bag.

“Approximately seven seconds later, Mr. Coderre took out his firearm, turned, and pointed the gun towards officers,” the report says. He then “fired his weapon repeatedly and in rapid succession,” striking an Acushnet Police officer in the leg. Officers returned fire, with four officers shooting at him and striking him five times. He died as a result of his injuries.

READ MORE: The Complete Findings and Conclusions in the Death of Paul Coderre, Jr.

Coderre Was Heavily Intoxicated at the Time of the Incident

According to the postmortem toxicology report, Coderre had a blood alcohol content of 0.202. According to Massachusetts law, .08 is considered the legal limit to be too intoxicated to drive.

The report also noted that Coderre did not have the presence of any “fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine, methanol, isopropanol, acetone, amphetamine, benzodiazepine, buprenorphine, opiates, cannabinoid, or other organic bases and neutrals” in his blood.

D.A.’s Office Concludes the Killing of Coderre Was Justified

“The use of force by officers from the Acushnet, Fairhaven and Mattapoisett police departments was consistent with the severity of the situation and with each department’s internal policies regarding the use of force,” the report states.

“It was also consistent with the law of self-defense and/or the defense of others. Due to Mr. Coderre’s unprovoked actions, the use of deadly force in this incident was reasonable based on the totality of the circumstances," the report says. "The use of force was not excessive because Mr. Coderre was actively shooting at police officers, striking one of them. Lethal force was necessary to prevent officers from suffering serious bodily injury and/or death. Numerous civilians in the area and patrons inside of the Bayside Lounge were also at risk of serious bodily injury and/or death.”

“Based on a review of all the facts and circumstances related to this incident, there is no basis to conclude that the responding police officers committed a crime,” the report concludes.