Christian Bordelies called his girlfriend after running over a 3-year-old while driving her car at Pope Park on Thursday and asked her to report it stolen, according to a police report.
His girlfriend said Bordelies explained that he had just hit a child, and then the phone went dead, the report states.
The boy, Joseph Ortiz-Resto, was pronounced dead at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center. Bordelies, who had run from the scene, turned himself in to police about 6 p.m. Thursday after speaking with a lawyer.
He was arraigned Friday at Superior Court after an outburst from the victim's family that forced judicial marshals to clear the courtroom. His bail was set at $200,000.
Bordelies is scheduled to return to court June 24. He is charged with negligent homicide with a motor vehicle, operating without a license, evading responsibility with death or serious injury and traveling unreasonably fast.
His attorney, Deron Freeman, said that his client fled because the situation at the park became hostile quickly, much like the arraignment on Friday. Several minutes after the accident, Bordelies began receiving death threats.
"He was and remains in fear for his life. He has been threatened. Although he did flee the scene, he was being chased by someone," Freeman said during the arraignment.
He said if his client asked his girlfriend to report the vehicle stolen, it was out of panic and fear.
"No one that I know would submit that he intentionally ran over this young man or is not remorseful for what happened," Freeman said.
Instead of reporting the car stolen, Bordelies' girlfriend went to the scene, where she told police about the conversation that she had had with Bordelies, the report states.
A passenger in the 1997 Buick Regal, Jerry Mercado, told police that he and Bordelies were going to Pope Park to smoke a marijuana "blunt" about 2 p.m. As they entered the park, they noticed five kids playing near the street along the right curb, the report states.
As they passed the children, one of them ran out in front of the car, giving Bordelies little time to react. Mercado told police that he got out of the car and ran to the child. Bordelies said, "Come on, come on," and then ran from the scene.
Witnesses said the vehicle was traveling at 15 to 20 mph, which is excessive for the area.
While at Hartford police headquarters, Bordelies said he felt bad for one person: "The kid that I hit. I wish I wasn't driving," he said. As he was being booked, he was very upset and mumbled that he wished he could take back everything that had happened, police said.
His arraignment Friday turned hostile almost immediately after Bordelies' name was called. Members of Joseph's family yelled before the court proceeding got underway. Judicial marshals tried to quell the disruption by telling everyone to calm down.
But the disruption intensified with calls for justice from the family, some of whom stood from their seats. One woman stood on a bench. The marshals cleared the courtroom and a short recess was called.
The family members were brought to a separate courtroom, where a court official spoke with them. At the end of the talk, the court official asked any family members who couldn't control themselves not to attend the arraignment because they wouldn't help the process.
The family members were then brought back to the main courtroom. They were quiet as Bordelies was arraigned, but vocalized their points of view outside the courthouse after the proceeding was over.
Joseph's father, Raul Ortiz, walked up to a television news camera and said, "When I catch him, I'll kill him."
Joseph's grandmother, Norma Marquez, said that Bordelies was shameless for running away.
Relatives described Joseph as a small boy who loved to climb trees. One of five children, he lived on Bedford Street, they said. The boy had been pulling the tops off dandelions in Pope Park on Thursday afternoon, sending the seeds flying through the air.
