The fiancé of the off-duty Massachusetts police officer who was shot this week during an armed standoff with a fellow officer—while they were trying to serve her a restraining order—had feared that she would kill both their baby son and herself, according to court records.
A North Andover firefighter requested an abuse prevention restraining order against new mom, Kelsey Fitzsimmons, expressing concern that the alarming and suicidal behavior she displayed during her pregnancy and after giving birth could intensify and pose a threat to their 4-month-old son, according to The Boston Globe. “I fear she will kill the baby at any moment,” he wrote in the order application.
Dangerous Outcome
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“Kelsey is threatening to take the baby ‘far, far, far away for a long, long time.’ This is how she has spoken about killing herself in the past,” he added. “She punched her stomach repeatedly while pregnant, saying she would kill herself and the baby.”
The firefighter fiancé said that the risk became even more apparent during a June 28 outing with friends, when Fitzsimmons, 28, allegedly hit him in the face three times and, in a drunken outburst, ran after him and their baby as he sought refuge at a friend’s home.
He said that during the incident, members of their friend group contacted four separate police departments, and the situation ended when Fitzsimmons’ parents arrived to take responsibility for the child.
“I fear if she doesn’t have me she will kill the baby because she has said she has nothing besides me,” he wrote. “Fitzsimmons is a danger to myself, her son and herself.”
The new father also warned authorities that Fitzsimmons would likely not take it well when they served her the restraining order—an expectation that came true Monday evening when three officers showed up at her residence to deliver it.
Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker said that Fitzsimmons got involved in an “armed confrontation” with her fellow officers, which led to one of them shooting her once in the chest.
Saved in Time
She was airlifted to a hospital in Boston, where she remains in stable condition, according to the DA. Fitzsimmons, who spent less than two years with the Andover Police Department, gave birth to a baby boy on February 16, according to local outlet CNHI.
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Just weeks later, she was involuntarily admitted to Lowell General Hospital for 12 hours to receive treatment for postpartum depression, following what court documents described as “mental health issues.”
After being discharged on March 10, she turned in her service weapon along with at least one of her personal firearms.
She was put on administrative leave on April 30, and her license to carry weapons was temporarily revoked due to her recent mental health hospitalization.
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Her attorney said that Fitzsimmons was actively receiving psychiatric care and attending therapy sessions to manage her postpartum depression.
By June 18, the Andover Police Department approved Fitzsimmons to resume duty and reinstated her license to carry a firearm. She then filed a notice to have her service weapon returned.
Authorities have not confirmed whether her service weapon were actually returned, but at the time of Monday’s incident, she remained on administrative leave. Her fiancé is now asking the court full legal custody of their son.
