Five Off-Duty Pittsburgh Cops Fired at Car

Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said Friday that it's "way too early" to judge if Pittsburgh Police were justified when they opened fire on a crowded South Side street at the end of a car chase.

Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said Friday that it's "way too early" to judge if Pittsburgh Police were justified when they opened fire on a crowded South Side street at the end of a car chase.

Zappala said his office is reviewing the actions of the five police officers, who were working off-duty security details at the time of the incident early Jan. 13. One of the officers' bullets hit Lena Davenport—the passenger in the car fleeing police — in the right eye, causing brain damage, family members said. The car was moving at the time, Zappala said.

Another bullet grazed a pedestrian. One officer fired at the wrong car, which Zappala said was a "problem."

Davenport's son, Donald Burris Jr., 32, of Carnegie, was driving when police said he ran a red light in Homestead and took off when Homestead police tried to pull him over.

Deputy Chief Paul Donaldson said the officers—Steve Matakovich, Calvin Kennedy, Igor Boyko, Louis Schweitzer and Thomas Gorecki—have been cleared to return to duty.

Read the full Pittsburgh Tribune story.

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