Massachusetts police officer shot by colleagues victim of ‘campaign to criminalize her’: Lawyer

An attorney for the off-duty Massachusetts police officer shot and injured by colleagues who were serving her a restraining order says his client remains in grave condition and has fallen victim to an appalling campaign to criminalize her North Andover police officer Kelsey Fitzsimmons has retained attorney Timothy Bradl for her legal episode in the aftermath of last Monday s armed confrontation with colleagues at her home Fitzsimmons faces one charge of assault to murder and two charges of assault with a deadly weapon in connection to the altercation according to records from Lawrence District Court Bradl says he and his client intend to fight these charges with every legal supply available latest his silence after he alleges a probate court affidavit full of hearsay and self-serving charges was deliberately and widely leaked smearing Kelsey s name in the press This was not an accident Bradl stated in a release late Wednesday night It was a strategy and we must set the record straight to assure future fairness for our client Addressing the media last Tuesday Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker highlighted how three North Andover police officers including a supervisor were dispatched to a Phillips Brooks Road home to serve Fitzsimmons a restraining order the evening before Fitzsimmons on administrative leave from the police department and the responding officers ultimately engaged in what Tucker described as an armed confrontation One of the officers discharged their weapon striking Fitzsimmons the DA commented In his release Bradl stated that the restraining order surprised Fitzsimmons with the father of her -month-old baby obtaining it in an ex parte fashion as he sought to take the child away from her Tucker shared that the restraining order required Fitzsimmons to surrender weapons she had and stay away from the North Andover Fire Department where her fianc works as a firefighter The Boston Globe first shared last week that Fitzsimmons fianc shared fears that she would kill their infant son and take her own life prompting him to seek a restraining order against her according to court records I fear she will kill the baby at any moment the fianc wrote Kelsey is threatening to take the baby far far far away for a long long time This is how she has spoken about killing herself in the past She punched her stomach repeatedly while pregnant he added saying she would kill herself and the baby The town of North Andover placed Fitzsimmons on administrative leave on April two months after she gave birth to the couple s son on Feb court records show Weeks after the birth she was involuntarily committed to Lowell General Hospital for hours of remedy for postpartum depression the Globe released The fianc seeking full legal and physical custody of his son further alleged in court documents that two days before the situation while the couple was in Maine Kelsey struck me with a closed fist x to the face I was scared she would not stop In current times we speak on behalf of Kelsey Fitzsimmons she necessities another voice to speak for her because she remains in grave condition in the hospital Bradl stated in his release as those with contrary interests are circling the wagons leveling serious criminal charges and leaking their self-serving probate court affidavits in an attempt to discredit her as she fights for her life Bradl outlined his defense strategy which he declared will address the shoot first fallacy held by various law enforcement officers that the instant a gun appears that the only response is to fire first The attorney also revealed the strategy will include an examination of the so-called officer created jeopardy whereby due to inadequate training or inappropriate response an officer creates dangerous circumstances in a call that are in turn met by a deadly force police response Kelsey is a new mother who was manifesting responses of postpartum depression at the time of the situation Bradl stated She needed help She needed compassion What she got instead was gunfire and now an appalling campaign to criminalize her in order to deflect accountability from the agency responsible for this botched response Instead of de-escalation she was met with deadly force The Essex County District Attorney s Office declined to comment further on Thursday providing the Herald with only Fitzsimmons charges and stating that the defendant remains hospitalized The office added that it will apprise the media of any arraignment Tucker noted last week that the officer who shot Fitzsimmons is a veteran cop with over years with the North Andover Police Department We call on the citizens the media and all those who care about due process and accountability to watch this incident closely and wait for all the facts to come out Bradl stated Consider issues related to postpartum depression in young mothers and the use of deadly force by police when faced with those suffering from emotional or mental impairment This should never have happened he added and it must never happen again