A Massachusetts judge acquitted police officer Kelsey Fitzsimmons on Thursday after she was shot by a fellow officer and spent 103 days in jail on assault charges. Judge Jeffrey Karp ruled prosecutors failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Fitzsimmons pointed her service weapon at Officer Patrick Noonan during a June 2025 confrontation at her home.

Breaking Point During Mental Health Crisis

Fitzsimmons, 29, testified she was suffering severe postpartum depression when three officers from her own North Andover police department arrived to serve a restraining order. Her fiancé had filed the order removing their infant son and even her dog from her care. During the bedroom confrontation, she drew her service weapon and pointed it at her own head in a suicide attempt, not at Noonan as he claimed.

Judge Karp found both accounts credible but said reasonable doubt remained. He noted prosecutors could have easily proven their case if officers wore body cameras. Noonan alleged Fitzsimmons pointed the gun at him and believed she intended to kill him or her fiancé downstairs. Fitzsimmons told the court she wanted to be alone with her firearm after losing everything in a 15-second conversation with her coworker.

Officer Lost Everything in Single Day

Outside court, Fitzsimmons described her harrowing ordeal since the shooting. She was shot, jailed for over three months, forced to sell her home, and separated from her son. Her fiancé Justin Aylaian ended their relationship through the restraining order just months before their planned wedding. She knew the restraining order would cost her job, home, and family. The officer said she tried to get the three responding officers to leave so they would not be harmed during her suicide attempt.

Fight for Custody Begins

Judge Karp praised Fitzsimmons as a dedicated public servant who reacted to sudden and heartbreaking news. He found no evidence of conspiracy by law enforcement in her case. Following the acquittal, Fitzsimmons said her priority is reuniting with her son. She spent her jail time on a mat crying day after day. The officer told reporters she can finally breathe again after months of trauma and legal battles that destroyed her career and family life.