A man in his 20s was hospitalized in critical condition after a shooting in Hartford on Friday afternoon, according to police. Officers were dispatched around 1:30 p.m. to a report of a person shot, and the search for the scene led them several blocks from where the call first sent them.
Hartford police officers were dispatched to the area of Grandview Terrace at West Preston Street after a report of a person shot, according to Lt. Aaron Boisvert, as reported by the Hartford Courant. Officers ultimately determined that the shooting had actually taken place in the area of Hillside Avenue and White Street. WTNH reported that the shooting location was about five blocks away from where police were initially dispatched.
The victim, identified only as a man in his 20s, was transported to an area hospital for treatment, where he was listed in critical condition. WTNH noted that no further information had been released at the time of its report.
Major Crimes Division Takes Over Investigation
Hartford police's Major Crimes and Crime Scene divisions responded to the scene to conduct an ongoing investigation, per Lt. Boisvert. The department asked anyone with information about the shooting to contact its tip line at 860-722-TIPS (8477).
Friday's shooting adds to a string of recent gun violence reports in the city. In late August, WFSB reported that a man in his twenties was recovering from a gunshot wound described by police as not life-threatening, after a shooting traced to the area of 41 Barnard Street — a case the station said also drew in Hartford's Major Crimes and Crime Scene divisions. In July, the Hartford Courant reported that two men, one in his 20s and one in his 30s, were both listed in critical condition — one critical but stable — after an early-morning shooting at 2739 Main St.
Mixed Signals on Citywide Shooting Trends
Broader numbers on gun violence in Hartford have told conflicting stories depending on the point in the year. A Fox 61 report referenced police data showing a rise in shooting victims in 2025, while a CT Insider report from August 2025 said Hartford police reported fewer homicides and nonfatal shootings that year up to that point, even after two shootings — one of them fatal — over a single weekend. Neither outlet's available reporting includes the underlying figures needed to reconcile those accounts.
No additional details about a suspect, a motive, or the condition of Friday's victim have been released. Hartford police have not said whether the investigation into the Hillside Avenue and White Street shooting has produced further leads.
