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Prosecutors argue a fellow officer is only alive today because of tactical training and a stroke of luck: there was no bullet in the chamber of Kelsey Fitzsimmons' gun.
Fitzsimmons, a North Andover police officer at the time, was shot by a fellow officer after she allegedly pointed a gun at him and attempted to fire it on June 25, 2025. The 28-year-old was 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 later that month, and the charges were presented to a grand jury. The grand jury chose to charge her with just one count of assault with a dangerous weapon. Fitzsimmons is now facing a bench trial.
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Prosecutors allege that she tried to shoot Patrick Noonan as he was serving her a restraining order from her fiancé. Fitzsimmons disputes this version of events, maintaining that she was pointing the gun at herself in a suicide attempt.
Assistant Essex District Attorney James Gubitose told Judge Jeffrey Karp Monday in opening statements that the former North Andover police officer pointed her service weapon at Noonan and pulled the trigger during a confrontation at her home, framing the encounter as a near-fatal assault rather than a mental health crisis.
"The defendant raised her gun," Gubitose said in opening statements. "There are two reasons that Patrick Noonan is alive today. The first being that Miss Fitzsimmons' gun, while it had a full magazine, it did not have a round in the chamber. The second reason is that Patrick Noonan had years, decades of training, and experience, reacting in a calm, professional way when he protected both himself and everyone else in that house."
Fitzsimmons has pleaded not guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon in connection with the June 2025 incident, which occurred when officers arrived to serve a restraining order obtained by her fiancé, Justin Aylaian. The restraining order required Fitzsimmons to have no contact with her child and surrender her weapons.
According to the prosecution, Fitzsimmons retrieved a firearm from another room and returned to confront officers. The gun did not fire, prosecutors said, because no round was chambered. Officers then attempted to defuse the situation.
"Kelsey, don't do it. Drop it. Kelsey, don't do it," Gubitose said, describing officers pleading with Fitzsimmons. "She is stepping backwards now."
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At that point, the officer opened fire, prosecutors said.
"He fires twice. She has now moved. He misses, and then strikes her," Gubitose said.
Fitzsimmons' defense attorney, Timothy Bradl, painted a different picture. He shared that the mom was struggling with postpartum depression and was suicidal.
"Kelsey, no. Kelsey, no. You don't say that when you're staring at the muzzle of a gun pointed at you. You say that to a person who has a gun to their head, and you don't shoot someone in the chest when they are seeking clearly to only harm themselves," he said.
"And when you do that, you quickly realize, Your Honor, that you need to adjust the narrative to save yourself. That's what this case is about, Your Honor."
Bradl said the events followed a sudden personal collapse for Fitzsimmons.
"On June 30, 2025, Miss Fitzsimmons' entire world imploded. It was destroyed when her fiancé obtained a restraining order behind her back. The North Andover Police had to serve that order."
Bradl described her as overwhelmed and humiliated as officers arrived.
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"And that day, Your Honor, Kelsey stood in her house, in humiliation, in front of her police colleagues and friends," he said.
The defense said Fitzsimmons then made a decision to take her own life.
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"She made a decision for herself. It's a decision that takes your breath away. She decides to end her life with her firearm in her bedroom," Bradl said.
They rejected the prosecution's theory that she posed a threat: "The idea of harming them, the evidence will show, is ludicrous."
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Bradl also challenged the portrayal of the officer involved, arguing his response reflected panic rather than control.
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"The evidence will show that he is not some super cool James Bond type, law enforcement officer, that he has a look of panic on his face, and that he's flustered."
"And that's when the words, Kelsey, no, Kelsey, no, are uttered. No law enforcement officer, judge, the evidence will show, in his right mind, would bargain with someone who has their hand on the trigger and the muzzle in your face."
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Instead, the defense said, he was trying to stop a suicide.
"The evidence here, judge, will show that he was trying to tell her not to kill herself."
The defense said Fitzsimmons never pointed the gun at officers and that the shooting resulted from a misinterpretation.
Because she waived her right to a jury, Judge Karp will decide the verdict. Fox News Digital has reached out to Bradl for comment.
