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Boston police officer pleads not guilty to manslaughter in fatal shooting
Nicholas O'Malley was arrested Thursday morning in connection with the March 11 shooting death of Stephenson King.
A Boston police officer has been charged with manslaughter as authorities say he shot and killed a suspected carjacker in Roxbury last week after allegedly telling the man, “Bro, I’m gonna f***ing shoot you.”
Nicholas O’Malley, 33, is charged in connection with the death of Stephenson King, 39, of Dorchester. He was arrested Thursday and pleaded not guilty in the Boston Municipal Court’s Roxbury Division, keeping his gaze to the floor as prosecutors accused him of unjustified use of deadly force.
“What we have here is the unlawful killing of another,” Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden told reporters after the hearing. “The evidence, as revealed to us through the investigation, is clear, and so we were left with the decision to charge manslaughter in this matter.”
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But Larry Calderone, president of the Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association, warned against “Monday morning quarterbacking.”
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“No officer ever wants to take a life, ever wants to discharge their firearm,” Calderone told reporters, flanked by dozens of uniformed officers. “But we carry that piece of equipment to keep you and your family safe, and we do a very good damn job at it.”
Judge Steven Kim released O’Malley on personal recognizance and ordered him to surrender any firearms in his possession. It was not immediately clear whether O’Malley remains on active duty.
In a statement, Commissioner Michael Cox said Thursday marked a “difficult day” for the city and Boston police, but he declined to comments on the facts of the case.
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“We rely on the integrity of the criminal justice system in what we do every day, and this case will be no different,” Cox said. “On behalf of the Boston Police Department, we want to extend our sympathies to all of those impacted.”
What happened?
Boston officers responded to the reported carjacking near 1500 Tremont St. around 9:45 p.m. on March 11 and later tracked down a vehicle matching the description near 10 Linwood Square, Cox previously told reporters.
Court documents indicate O’Malley and another officer spotted the vehicle, drew their firearms, and yelled commands to King, who purportedly showed them his hands “at times” and partially opened his window, though he did not unlock or turn off the car.
“Bro, I’m gonna f***ing shoot you,” O’Malley allegedly shouted to King through the window, “while holstering his firearm in favor of a Taser.”
King immediately put the car in reverse and backed into the cruiser behind him, driving forward, reversing, and pulling forward again in an alleged attempt to flee. As the car began to move forward the last time, authorities say O’Malley drew his firearm again and fired three shots at King through the driver’s window.
“It appears that all three bullets struck Mr. King, and two of them were found lodged in his body, causing his death,” Assistant District Attorney Ian Polumbaum said in court.
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According to court documents, King was unarmed and had no weapons with him inside the car.
O’Malley allegedly told investigators he fired his weapon because he believed the reversing vehicle was going to crush a fellow officer. He also said that King “tried to run us over,” according to court documents, though authorities say that body-worn camera footage revealed neither officer was in danger of being struck.
Polumbaum argued the bodycam footage from both officers established that King was “maneuvering and clearly trying to drive away, rather than run anyone over.” In fact, the prosecutor added, the other officer was almost directly across from O’Malley at the time and “was in greater danger of being struck by those bullets than he ever was of being struck by the car.”
Officer’s attorney alleges ‘election-year tactics’
Although King was suspected of a violent crime and was attempting to flee, the situation did not warrant the use of deadly force, Polumbaum argued. He requested $25,000 bail, a sum he said reflects the seriousness of the allegations and amounts to about an eighth of O’Malley’s 2025 earnings, which exceeded $218,000.
Defense attorney Kenneth Anderson pushed back, noting O’Malley has an “unblemished record” with the Boston Police Department, lives in West Roxbury with his wife and children, and “is absolutely not a flight risk.” Anderson also chided prosecutors for having O’Malley arrested, rather than allowing him to surrender.
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“I don’t know if it’s because it’s an election year or not,” he derided.
Speaking outside the courthouse, Hayden fired back.
“This has nothing to do with an election year,” he said. “That has nothing to do with public opinion, has nothing to do with politics. This has to do with us following the facts and the applicable law and the circumstances.”
Polumbaum added that O’Malley was “treated no better or no worse” than a civilian charged with a serious crime.
Anderson was also adamant that O’Malley stands by his actions.
Prosecutors “can say whatever they want about my client being able to see where his partner was because his body-worn camera could see it, but that body-worn camera does not have human adrenaline,” Anderson said. “That body-worn camera is not worried about not seeing somebody’s hands. That body-worn camera isn’t worried about going home safe at night.”
Two Boston city councilors, Miniard Culpepper and Brian Worrell, have called for police to release bodycam footage of the shooting in a push for greater transparency. However, Hayden said Thursday that his office will not publicly share any additional evidence “for the integrity of this investigation” — a move Anderson said he supports.
“To do so would clearly compromise and imperil the ongoing investigation and the future prosecution of this most serious matter,” Hayden explained.
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The DA also offered his condolences to King’s family, adding, “His life matters, and my office is firmly committed to seeking justice in this case.”
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