Judge lets ex-police officer walk after she denied pointing gun at fellow cop who shot her in home standoff
This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
A former Massachusetts police officer has been found not guilty of attempting to shoot a brother in blue after she testified she was trying to kill herself as officers arrived at her home to serve a restraining order filed by her ex-fiancé.
Kelsey Fitzsimmons, a 29-year-old former North Andover police officer, went to trial after she was charged with a single count of assault with a dangerous weapon after prosecutors alleged she pointed a gun at a fellow officer, Patrick Noonan, and attempted to fire it on June 25, 2025.
However, Fitzsimmons vehemently denied the allegations, instead insisting that she was attempting to kill herself when officers arrived at her home to serve a restraining order obtained by her fiancé, Justin Aylaian, and take custody of her young child.
"I didn't want to involve anybody. I wanted to take my own life," she said earlier this week. "I never pointed the gun at a fellow police officer. It never happened."
The verdict was handed down by Judge Jeffrey Karp after nearly four hours of deliberations on Thursday, according to WCVB.
Karp decided the case because Fitzsimmons reportedly waived her right to a trial by jury.
"I think that Ms. Fitzsimmons, Officer Noonan and all the people involved in the tragic events of June 30, 2025, deserve an explanation," Karp said before delivering his decision, according to WCVB.
"I am left with a reasonable doubt and I am duty-bound to find that the Commonwealth has not met its burden to prove that Ms. Fitzsimmons committed an assault by means of a dangerous weapon," he said. "My verdict is, and must be, not guilty."
Karp went on to add he found no evidence that Fitzsimmons had been the victim of a conspiracy.
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"I saw no evidence of a conspiracy in this case. What I saw was dedicated public servants, like Officer Noonan and his fellow officers, doing the best they could under rapidly evolving, emotional circumstances," Karp said.
Fitzsimmons was shot by Noonan after allegedly pointing a gun at him, and was later arrested and arraigned on one count of armed assault with intent to murder and two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon.
She was indicted in Essex Superior Court, but a grand jury ultimately chose to maintain just one count of assault with a dangerous weapon.
Upon taking the stand Wednesday, Fitzsimmons recalled the moment she was shot by Noonan.
"I went into like a huge adrenaline shock. It didn't feel like normal pain. It almost felt like absent pain, but it felt like my entire body was burning, and I was completely alert, completely awake the whole time," Fitzsimmons said.
"I was speaking as much as I could. My lung was punctured, so that's why I was having trouble breathing, but other than that, I was very alert and aware of my surroundings."
Immediately following the shooting, Fitzsimmons reportedly said the fire department and additional resources transported her from her home to a local hospital, where she repeatedly told them she "wanted to die" after authorities arrived to serve the restraining order and take custody of her four-month-old child.
"They brought me outside, and I think when I was still in my house, one of the firefighters was trying to put oxygen on my face, and I was taking it off and just saying, 'I want to die, I want to die, I want to die.'"
In closing statements, defense attorney Tim Bradl pointed to the possibility that Noonan made the decision to shoot Fitzsimmons too quickly, according to the outlet.
"He's the only one with the Rambo story," Bradl said. "Everyone else has what Kelsey says. He walks into a suicide in progress. He sees it. He reacts. 'Kelsey no, Kelsey no.' Bam. Bam. Brain freeze. Mistake. He has to cover it up."
However, prosecuting attorney James Gubitose reportedly held up Fitzsimmons' empty gun during his closing, insisting that evidence contradicted Fitzsimmons' testimony while praising Noonan’s police training.
"It's impossible to have happened the way she said it," Gubitose said. "It is scientifically, mechanically impossible for it to happen the way she said."
In a statement to Fox News Digital, the Essex County District Attorney's Office added that the indictment "was brought in good faith, supported by credible police testimony and corroborated by the physical evidence," and "while respecting the judge's verdict, we disagree."
"We also commend the professionalism and civility of prosecutors involved in this highly public and emotionally charged case as well as this being an instance of police officers acting to the best of their ability during a tragic and rapidly evolving incident. The work of police officers, particularly in cases involving restraining orders, is extremely dangerous and I recognize their dedication, courage and willingness to serve."
Fitzsimmons' attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Fox News Digital's Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.