A Massachusetts man accused of manslaughter in connection with the death of his father, a prominent retired West Hartford lawyer, was arraigned Thursday in Hartford Superior Court.

The state's case against Bruce F. Brodigan, 56, of 63 Linden Ave., Somerville, was continued until Jan. 27, when a plea hearing is scheduled.

Brodigan, who is free on a $250,000 bond, is charged with second-degree manslaughter, a Class C felony, tampering with evidence, making false statements to police and interfering with police.

His father, George D. Brodigan, who had Alzheimer’s disease, died Sept. 14 in his bed at 50 Timberwood Road, West Hartford police said. He was 82.

The cause of Brodigan’s death was an overdose of alcohol and amitriptyline, police said. The state Medical Examiner’s office was unable to determine the manner of death, West Hartford police Det. Dawn Lascari said in a 12-page affidavit that resulted in an arrest warrant.

Brodigan turned himself in to West Hartford police on Jan. 5.

“We are not going to comment,” said attorney Hubert Santos after leaving Superior Court Judge John Cronan’s courtroom with Brodigan.

A toxicology study indicated Brodigan’s blood-alcohol level was .13, far exceeding the legal definition of impairment. The antidepressant medication amitriptyline was prescribed to Bruce Brodigan, Det. Lascari said in the arrest affidavit. Evidence collected at the house included a half-bottle of rum, do-not-resuscitate orders, financial documents and a copy of “Final Exit,” a how-to guide for suicide.

According to the police report, Brodigan told investigators that his father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s “four to five years ago.” He said his father “confided in him that he had planned to take his own life before he became completely incapacitated.”

A 1969 Connecticut statute made assisted suicide a Class C felony. Physician-assisted suicide is permissible under certain conditions in Washington, Oregon and Montana.

Brodigan initially told police that he arrived at Timberwood Road at 4:30 p.m. on Sept. 14 with his husband, Tom Grasso, also of 63 Linden Ave., Somerville, and discovered his father deceased. He called his father’s physician, who made the emergency call.

Later, Brodigan told investigators that he and Grasso were in the bedroom when Brodigan’s father allegedly took his life with a mixture of pills and alcohol.

Brodigan’s sister, Amy Brodigan, also was at the house with a woman identified as her partner but apparently left before the alleged incident, police said.

The case would appear certain to attract broad attention and potentially stir a debate between advocates for the terminally ill and right-to-life groups.

Santos, Brodigan’s attorney, and his law partner, Hope Seeley, are accustomed to high-profile cases. Santos gained an acquittal in 1990 for Karin Aparo, who was accused of conspiring to kill her mother. And he has represented well-known defendants such as Michael Ross, Chasity West, Michael Skakel, former State Treasurer Paul Silvester and former Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez.

George Brodigan, a veteran of the Marine Corps who was wounded in the Korean War, started his own law firm in 1975 after many years in corporate litigation for Travelers Insurance Cos., according to his obituary. A graduate of the University of Virginia Law School, he was an interim Superior Court judge in 1985 and ’86.

A memorial service is scheduled March 5, the anniversary of his birth.