Hartford Cold Case Ends In Murder Conviction

HARTFORD, CT — A 35-year-old man charged in a fatal 2005 shooting in Hartford that was a cold case for several years was found guilty in Hartford Superior Court Thursday, authorities said.

Chief State’s Attorney Patrick J. Griffin said a Hartford Superior Court jury Thursday found Brandon Jones, 35, guilty of murder. The conviction stems from the 2005 fatal shooting of Dante Davis in Hartford.

According to evidence at trial, Hartford police received a complaint of a woman shot at 131 Martin St. in Hartford at 11:08 p.m. on June 21, 2005, Griffin said.

Responding officers determined Davis, 21, was standing in front of that location with her boyfriend and others when armed assailants opened fire in the area, authorities said.

Griffin said Davis was struck in the head by the gunfire and was transported to the hospital prior to police arrival. Davis later died of her wounds.

In March 2022, Jones and three other people were charged in connection with the case following a joint investigation by the Cold Case Unit of the Of office the Chief State’s Attorney, the Hartford State’s Attorney’s Office and the Hartford Police Department.

The investigation included following up on dozens of tips, conducting numerous witness interviews and the examination of cellphone records, as well as a grand jury investigation.

Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney John F. Fahey, head of the Cold Case Unit, and Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Robin Krawczyk, who both prosecuted the case, said they are grateful to investigators in the Cold Case Unit, the Hartford State’s Attorney’s Office, the Hartford Police Department and the state Department of Correction, Security Division.

“We in the Cold Case Unit as well as members of Ms. Davis’ family are grateful to the ladies and gentlemen of the jury on this case who listened attentively to the evidence and deliberated carefully in arriving at this verdict," Fahey said. "The family has waited many years for justice after suffering such an unimaginable loss."