A Massachusetts decide discovered a disgraced cop not responsible of attempting to shoot a fellow officer after she emotionally testified earlier this week in regards to the despair that led her to attempt to take her personal life.
Choose Jeffrey Karp, moderately than a jury, rendered the decision on a single rely of assault with a harmful weapon after three days of testimony within the assault case in opposition to North Andover Police Officer Kelsey Fitzsimmons.
Fitzsimmons remained stoic because the decide defined his resolution — and stated each accounts of what occurred had been credible.
Fitzsimmons, 29, was accused of pointing her service weapon at Officer Patrick Noonan on June 30, 2025, after he and two different cops got here to her North Andover dwelling to serve her with a restraining order from her fiancé, quickly taking away her 4-month-old son and canine.
Fitzsimmons claimed Wednesday on the stand within the Lawrence, Mass. courtroom that she by no means pointed a gun at Noonan and in reality, was aiming at her personal head after she determined to commit suicide within the minutes after it set in that her world was collapsing.
“I wished to be alone with my firearm and take my life,” she testified. “I made that call after I realized I had simply misplaced the whole lot in a 15-second dialog with my co-worker.”
She stated her fiancé, Justin Aylaian, primarily broke up along with her by taking out the restraining order as their marriage ceremony was simply months away. She was going to must combat to maintain custody of her son and canine and he or she would now not be capable of afford her home if Aylaian moved out. She additionally believed the restraining order would guarantee she misplaced her job.
“My child gone, my fiancé, my canine and my home and I knew it was going to be my job too. No matter I used to be accused of wasn’t good as a result of there was a restraining order,” she stated.
So she determined to attempt to get the three cops out of her means in order that they wouldn’t be concerned or harmed through the act, she stated.
However Noonan testified that as Fitzsimmons was in her bed room, packing objects to ship along with her son, she lunged behind her door and grabbed one thing, earlier than stepping again and aiming the weapon straight at him.
He heard a “click on” noise earlier than she “faucet racked” twice to pressure a discovered into the chamber. And when she did Noonan fired off two rounds till she dropped the gun and hit the ground, he claimed.
Fitzsimmons’ lung was punctured by the shot and needed to be airlifted to Mass Basic Hospital the place she would spend over 50 days recovering, following 5 surgical procedures.
Throughout closing arguments Thursday morning, prosecutor James Gubitose dramatically held up Fitzsimmons’ empty gun, pointing it towards the entrance of the courtroom and urgent the set off, inflicting a clicking noise.
He claimed she lied when she testified she by no means faucet racked the gun since an officer on the scene emptied the firearm right into a black field with a spherical falling out of the chamber — indicating she had efficiently loaded a bullet.
Aylaian additionally took the witness stand, claiming he sought the order in opposition to Fitzsimmons, fearing she may hurt herself or their son.
Fitzsimmons has claimed she was affected by extreme postpartum melancholy having solely given beginning 4 months earlier.
Fitzsimmons’ protection legal professional, Timothy Bradl, claimed Fitzsimmons had no motive to kill Noonan, a buddy who she’d gone on powerful emergency calls with and who she knew had a spouse and child.
Bradl referred to as Noonan’s account of what occurred “sloppy” and inconsistent, mocking it as a narrative that might have come straight out of a “Rambo” film.
“Again pedaling, side-stepping, faucet racking,” Bradl stated, repeating a few of what Noonan claimed about Fitzsimmons’ actions within the second earlier than he shot her.
“He’s on the one one with the ‘Rambo’ story,” Bradl stated of Noonan. “Everybody else has what Kelsey says. He walks right into a suicide in progress, ‘Kelsey, no. Kelsey, no.’ Bam Bam. Mind freeze. He has to cowl it up instantly.”
In case you are fighting suicidal ideas or are experiencing a psychological well being disaster and stay in New York Metropolis, you may name 1-888-NYC-WELL without spending a dime and confidential disaster counseling.
If you happen to stay outdoors the 5 boroughs, you may dial the 24/7 Nationwide Suicide Prevention hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.
