NEW YORK (PIX11) – At 30 years old, Kishan Patel had plenty of life ahead of him – he was preparing for his summer wedding and taking over his family's New Jersey businesses.
Everything turned “upside down” one evening in May when he was shot by an off-duty NYPD officer accused of targeting Patel in a fit of road rage, according to the Camden County prosecutor. Months later, Patel is largely unresponsive, quadriplegic, and has severe brain injuries.
His family on Tuesday filed a federal lawsuit against New York City, claiming the officer who shot their son was a “ticking timebomb” who never should have been issued a gun.
“This case is a product of the way the police department has conducted itself over the years and this is the tragedy that ultimately was going to happen,” the family’s lawyer, Joseph Marrone, said during a news conference Wednesday.
Hieu Tran, a three-year veteran of the NYPD, is accused of shooting Patel in the head on May 17 near Route 73 and Cooper Road in Voorhees Township, according to prosecutors.
Tran is accused of pulling up next to Patel at a red light and firing into his car, according to a criminal complaint. After he was shot, Patel drove through the red light and into oncoming traffic, according to the complaint.
Tran allegedly used his NYPD-issued gun in the shooting and left the scene immediately after, prosecutors said. He returned to work at the NYPD the next day “like nothing had happened,” according to a court transcript included in the lawsuit. Tran was arrested weeks later and charged with attempted murder.
Patel was only two minutes from his home when he was shot, according to his mother, Manjina Patel. He was on the phone with his friends.
"Why did he do this?” Patel’s mother asked of the accused shooter.
In response to the lawsuit, Tran’s attorney, Robin Lord, told PIX11 News her client is innocent.
“While the injuries to Mr. Patel are sad and unfortunate and Mr. Tran continues to pray for him, Mr. Tran maintains his innocence of these charges; there is much more to the story than what has been reported,” Lord said.
Patel’s parents visit him in the hospital every morning to cut his hair, shave his face and clean him up.
“We’re finding it very, very hard; every day it’s different,” his mother said.
On Thursday, the 30-year-old will be sent to an “aggressive treatment facility” that will cost thousands per day to try to stimulate brain activity, according to Dan Gaughan, Manjina Patel’s fiance.
“For Kishan we will do anything,” Manjina Patel said. “We just want him to recover from this.”
Kishan Patel’s presence in the community is unmistakable, Gaughan said. After he was shot, hundreds of people showed up to the hospital in support, in large part because of his role in the family’s stores in Camden and Williamstown.
Patel’s lawyer on Wednesday painted a picture of NYPD negligence which allowed a “troubled” officer to remain on the force.
“I was shocked when I found out that it was an NYPD officer. I had to ask the police, ‘Are you sure? It can’t be. Are you sure you got the right person?’” Manjina Patel said.
After joining the department in 2021, Tran became known as a “'problem officer' who needed to be taken ‘off the street,’” Patel’s lawyer said.
New Jersey court transcripts included in the lawsuit show Tran underwent a psychological evaluation that determined he was on a “downward spiral” fueled by PTSD and substance abuse. His superiors at the NYPD were aware of the issues, Tran's former attorney said at the hearing.
“Why was he issued a gun in the first place,” Marrone said. "He was a troubled officer and they knew it."
The NYPD declined to comment on the lawsuit. In June, a department spokesperson said Tran had been suspended without pay pending the investigation.
For Patel's loved ones, this case is about much more than Tran.
"This could be avoidable with more checks and balances in the department," said Gaughan. "There's more families out there like this."
