Former Mass. police chief asks judge to drop charges in 8-year-old Conn. boy’s Uzi death

Mass. man wants charges dropped in boy’s Uzi death

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — A former Massachusetts police chief is asking a judge to dismiss charges he faces in connection with an child’s accidental shooting death at a gun show.

Former Pelham Police Chief Edward Fleury is charged with involuntary manslaughter and says he couldn’t have foreseen the death of 8-year-old Christopher Bizilj (bah-SEEL’).

The Ashford, Conn., boy accidentally shot himself in the head when he lost control of a small Uzi he was shooting during a 2008 gun show that Fleury had organized in Westfield.

The event allowed visitors of all ages to fire assault weapons.

A Hampden Superior Court judge is considering Fleury’s request. He is slated to stand trial next month, though officials say that date might be changed.

Information from: The Springfield Republican, www.masslive.com/news/