Democratic Boston councilor rips 'soft-on-crime' policies after suspected gunman's violent past revealed
A Democratic Boston city councilor slammed what he views as "soft-on-crime" policies that allowed the man who allegedly opened fire in nearby Cambridge on Monday to walk free after previously serving a short amount of time for violent offenses.
Tyler Brown, 46, is in custody after allegedly firing 50 to 60 rounds into traffic on Memorial Drive in Cambridge early in the afternoon on Monday. Terrifying video of the incident, which left four people shot, including Brown, quickly went viral.
Brown is currently in custody in the hospital, recovering from gunshot wounds in his extremities.
"There is absolutely no way this person should have been released on probation and/or parole," Boston Councilman Ed Flynn told Fox News Digital. "When you have a lengthy criminal record and you constantly continue to be convicted and engaged in criminal activities, there should be a long prison sentence for someone, that continues to disregard rules of society."
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And Brown does have a violent criminal history.
In 2014, he was convicted of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon — in that case a knife — and witness intimidation.
In 2020, while on probation for the previous crimes, he engaged in a shootout with four Boston police officers, firing 13 rounds from a .40 Glock semiautomatic handgun at the officers when they responded to a report about a man with a gun.
In 2021, he pleaded guilty to eight charges stemming from that incident. Those charges included:
Flynn, who was first elected to the city council in 2017 and once worked for the Clinton administration, said he knows one of the four Boston police officers involved in that incident, and that they went to school together.
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An officer wrote a victim-impact statement at the time, saying that, "I am a firm believer that when Mr. Tyler Brown gets out, he will hurt, or worse, kill someone," according to NBC Boston.
"We have to think of the victims and the survivors of violent crime before we sentence someone to prison, probation [or] parole," said Flynn. "And when a victim testifies about the violence used and the likelihood that this person will re-offend and engage in criminal activity, we have to hear that testimony, respect that testimony and implement a sentence that respects the victim and the survivor of crime."
"I don't think we did that in this case. In fact, I know we didn't do that in this case, but this is not an isolated case," he continued.
Brown was sentenced to five to six years in prison and three years of probation, stemming from the 2020 crime, a controversial move at the time that was criticized by then-Suffolk County District Attorney Rachel Rollins.
Rollins blasted the sentence handed down by then-Suffolk Superior Court Judge Janet Sanders for not abiding by her recommendation of 10 to 12 years with five years of probation.
"When an individual commits serious, violent offenses that threaten the lives of our community members – which include members of law enforcement – I will advocate for their removal and detention. My office recommended a significant sentence for Mr. Brown given the nature of his offenses and the trauma and harm he inflicted," Rollins said in a statement at the time.
She said she was "disappointed in the sentence that was imposed," and personally apologized to the officers who were attacked and to their families.
Flynn told Fox News Digital that police officers are frustrated with relaxed crime policies that let offenders walk free.
"Police feel frustrated that the criminal justice system does not respect them and survivors of crime. Police want accountability, and they want the criminal justice system to work, and for the criminal system to work, we have to hold people accountable for their actions," said Flynn. "It might be politically incorrect to do that. But we have to provide a safe and healthy environment for residents of the city, for our police, for our neighborhood, and for our neighbors."
He said ignoring violent crime is not a solution and that Bostonians want criminals to be punished.
"Boston is changing, and I think the residents are fed up, and they want us to be more aggressive in holding people accountable," he said. "They want the criminal justice system to work for survivors of crime, for victims of crime and for society at large. Right now, there is a perception that it works for criminals."
He also noted that he represents one of the most progressive districts in the city, but specifically called out that wing of the Democratic Party.
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"The progressive base of the Democratic party is soft on crime and doesn't want to hold people accountable for their actions, and I think that's a mistake for the Democratic Party to ignore ongoing criminal activity in neighborhoods, because it creates destabilization of residents of neighborhoods and it contributes to a declining quality of life of residents in an unhealthy neighborhood," he said.
"Residents deserve better than that," he concluded.
A criminal complaint against Brown says he spoke to his parole officer on the phone on Monday morning and said he had relapsed on crack cocaine, and that he was ready to end his own life. His parole officer alerted the police at around 12:10 p.m., shortly before the shooting, and drove to Brown's residence.
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Brown was not home, but called his parole officer on a different phone via FaceTime. He was waving a semiautomatic rifle, according to the complaint, and said, "these people are going to f---ing pay," and, "I'm not going back to prison."
At around 1:30 p.m., Brown is accused of opening fire on Memorial Drive, shooting "erratically" and hitting two people in a vehicle, critically injuring both.
A state trooper arrived on scene and engaged Brown in a firefight. A witness to the event, a U.S. Marine and firearms instructor, also opened fire on Brown.
Brown had been released from a mental health facility on May 8.
He faces two counts of armed assault with intent to murder using a firearm and two counts of attempted assault and battery by discharge of a firearm, along with a litany of related gun charges.