Body-camera video shows a suspected sailboat thief firing first at Newport police before officers returned fire, leaving the suspect dead and an officer injured.
Story Snapshot
- Police video shows officers ordering the suspect to stay on deck before a gunshot rings out.
- Newport’s police chief says the suspect fired one shot from inside the cabin.
- One officer was hit in the leg during the exchange and treated at a local hospital.
- The 40-foot sailboat was reported stolen from New Jersey and found in Newport.
Police Say The Suspect Fired First As Officers Boarded The Stolen Sailboat
Newport police released a narrated critical-incident video that combines body-camera clips and radio traffic from the August confrontation. The footage shows officers boarding a 40-foot sailboat and ordering the man, identified by authorities as Norris, to stay on deck and show his hands. The video captures him moving below deck. A single gunshot is then heard, and an officer shouts that shots were fired, matching the department’s timeline of events.
Newport Police Chief Ryan Duffy said Norris fired one round from inside the cabin before officers returned fire. The chief’s account tracks with the sequence in the released video and radio calls. Reporters who reviewed the footage described the same order of events: commands to stay on deck, the suspect’s movement below, and a first gunshot from the cabin area. Investigators stressed that the release informs the public while the formal review continues.
Officer Injured And Suspect Found With Firearm Inside The Cabin
Body-camera audio captures an officer yelling, “I’m hit,” and later stating the wound was in the leg. Reports say the officer received treatment at Newport Hospital and later recovered. After the exchange, officers entered the cabin and found Norris unresponsive with a severe head injury. A firearm was next to him, according to the chief’s post-incident description contained in coverage of the video release. Medical responders pronounced Norris dead at the scene.
Accounts differ slightly on the exact nature of the officer’s leg injury, with some reports calling it a gunshot wound and others describing a graze or debris impact. Those summaries agree, however, that the injury happened during the first seconds after the cabin gunshot. Authorities have not provided a public, complete round count or a weapon-by-weapon firing timeline, but they have kept the central sequence consistent across official statements and media descriptions.
How A Reported New Jersey Theft Ended In Newport Harbor Gunfire
Authorities say the sailboat, a 40-foot Pathfinder, was reported stolen from Liberty Harbor Marina in Jersey City on August 22. Newport police later located the vessel in their harbor with Norris aboard, drawing in local officers and the harbormaster to secure the scene. The body-camera release places viewers on the deck during the encounter, showing commands, movement, and the sudden turn to gunfire. That chain links the theft report to the Newport use-of-force incident.
Suspected Sailboat Thief Killed In Shootout With Police In Rhode Island
A 27-year-old suspected sailboat thief, identified as Brendan Norris, has been shot dead in a confrontation with police in Newport, Rhode Island, after allegedly opening fire on officers.
Police approached… pic.twitter.com/pNo82LLF8K
— Trivane News (@TrivaneNews) November 3, 2026
Police released the edited, narrated video package to give the public a clear look at what officers faced in tight quarters on the water. State-level reviews and standard investigative steps continue and may later add technical detail. For now, the record shows a suspect on a stolen boat, officers issuing direct commands, a first shot from inside the cabin, a wounded officer, and gunfire that ended with the suspect dead. That is the sequence officials put forward, supported by the released video.
Sources:
facebook.com, wpri.com, boston25news.com, newjersey.news12.com, bostonglobe.com
