Wounded Pa. Police Chief Returns to Work after Shooting

The Bucks County police chief who was shot after responding to an assistance call plans to be back at work this week, though it will be behind a desk, for now.

Yardley Borough Chief Joseph Kelly III said he is healing from the wounds he suffered to his left hand and ear on Aug. 18 after a 24-year-old Yardley man fired a shotgun through the front door of his condominium, resulting in a five-hour standoff with police.

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In an interview Thursday, Kelly said he does not have any permanent hearing loss or damage, and the abrasions on his ear have healed. His hand is another story.

Kelly, 54, continues to recover from surgery to remove shotgun pellets from four fingers. He also suffered a broken ring finger, which was shattered after being struck with projectiles, he said.

The shooting and subsequent police standoff rocked the small riverfront borough of less than 2,500 residents, where ducks have a dedicated crosswalk to Lake Afton and domestic disturbance calls are rare.

The 1-square mile town is home to Victorian-era homes, boutique small businesses, the Delaware Canal towpath, trendy restaurants and a mostly part-time police force that until recently didn't carry stun guns.

So it was not unusual that on a Wednesday morning when a radio call came in requesting officer assistance that Kelly was the one who responded. He usually goes out on serious calls, he said.

Plus, the only other officer on duty that morning was already out on a call, Kelly said.

"It's pretty well the same in all the boroughs in this area," the chief said. "You have very few people working."

With an active criminal case pending, Kelly said he can't talk in detail about what happened after he arrived at Unit 806 in Yardley Commons.

He can confirm a Bucks County probation officer was seeking assistance at the condo complex located about a mile down Main Street from the borough police headquarters.

He also confirmed that it was only minutes between when he arrived at the scene and when the shotgun blast occurred.

Authorities allege Colin Petroziello fired a 12-gauge shotgun through the front door of his condominium moments after Kelly knocked on the door and identified himself as a police officer.

The shooting led to a standoff that ended when police forcibly entered the condo and found Petroziello asleep, court documents said.

Petroziello's parents said their son has a long history of mental illness including two involuntary mental health commitments, which bar him from possessing firearms in Pennsylvania.

In his 35-year law enforcement career, Kelly said that he had never before faced a situation where he was confronted with a gun.

Immediately, Kelly said he felt the left side of his head was hit and he could see his left hand was bloody and he couldn't move his one hand.

He ran and took cover while calling for assistance, Kelly said.

At the time, Kelly said he could tell the wounds were not life-threatening, he said.

Someone checked his head and told him the blood was coming from his ear. He evaluated his hand and could tell that no major arteries were hit, he said.

While Kelly plans to return to the job he has held since 2015, it will be on modified duty and only administrative office work, he said. He has no timeline for when he'll be returning to work full time.

But when he does, he plans to resume responding to calls, including those seeing police assistance.

"Absolutely," Kelly said. "It's what I do. I'm a police officer."

Before he landed in Yardley, Kelly worked as a New Jersey Transit police officer for 23 years rising to the role of chief of operations.

He is a third generation law enforcement officer. His father was a part-time police officer in Maplewood, New Jersey for 47 years, and his grandfather was a park police officer in Pittsburgh, he said.

The tradition will continue with his 23-year-old son, Joseph Kelly IV, who recently graduated from the New Jersey Transit Police training academy in Orange, New Jersey.

Kelly presented his son with his police shield during the swearing in ceremony.

The brush with death has left Kelly more contemplative than shaken, he said.

"It made me appreciate life more," he said.

The experience has also made him feel that much closer to the community he serves.

The feeling is mutual, based on hundreds of social media posts of local leaders, businesses, residents, and other law enforcement officers and agencies the day of the shooting and after.

When he was released from the hospital the day after the shooting he was give a hero's reception as officers, family and community members saluted and cheered as he left St. Mary Medical Center and escorted home.

"Words cannot express my admiration for him, and for the members of our Yardley Borough Police Department, who exude the core values he preaches and lives by... integrity, loyalty, respect and courage," Yardley Mayor Harding wrote on Aug. 18. " Chief Kelly demonstrated each and every one of these qualities today."

Yardley Council President David Bria called Kelly one of the best things that has ever happened to the borough. "He created such a culture of professionalism among our officers and really helped modernize our department."

Kelly doesn't want people to define Yardley by the bad actions of a single person but by the outpouring of community spirit he and his family have experienced over the last week.

"I would describe Yardley as having an old-time feel. People still care about each other deeply, and they still care about their community. I really do feel it's a special, special place."

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