{"id":1400830,"date":"2026-01-28T22:09:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T03:09:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thenewsherald.com\/?p=1400830&preview=true&preview_id=1400830"},"modified":"2026-01-28T22:09:27","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T03:09:27","slug":"meriden-ct-shooting-birthday-party-dispute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thenewsherald.com\/2026\/01\/28\/meriden-ct-shooting-birthday-party-dispute\/","title":{"rendered":"Connecticut father fatally shot in dispute over child\u2019s birthday party, police say"},"content":{"rendered":"

The fatal shooting of a young Connecticut father last week<\/a> allegedly stemmed from a dispute over his child\u2019s upcoming birthday party.<\/p>\n

Meriden police say Dovone Still, 21, called 911 around noon on Jan. 19 and told dispatchers that her child\u2019s father had been shot<\/a>, the CTPost reported Tuesday, citing an arrest warrant.<\/p>\n

Officers arrived to find 22-year-old Deron Johnson suffering from a gunshot wound<\/a>\u00a0in the area of Cook Avenue and Summer Street. He was transported to MidState Medical Center<\/a>, where he was later pronounced dead.<\/p>\n

Family members told CT Insider that Johnson was a surgical technician<\/a> working at a local hospital and was the father of a 2-year-old son.<\/p>\n

In the wake of his death, investigators learned that Still\u2019s boyfriend, 28-year-old Aren Scott, had been feuding over a birthday party that he\u2019d planned for Johnson and Still\u2019s son. Family told police that Johnson believed Scott had overstepped and that their issues only intensified in recent days.<\/p>\n