Kelsey Fitzsimmons acquitted of assault charge

Kelsey Fitzsimmons was found not guilty of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon Thursday. Judge Jeffrey Karp announced his decision after presiding over a bench trial that began Monday.  

Fitzsimmons, a former North Andover police officer, was charged after a shooting on June 30, 2025. She was shot by a colleague, Officer Patrick Noonan, in her home that evening. Prosecutors argued that Fitzsimmons pointed a weapon of hers at Noonan, prompting him to fire back. The defense argued that Fitzsimmons never pointed the gun anywhere except at her own head, in a suicide attempt. North Andover police do not use body cameras.

In announcing his decision, which came after a few hours of deliberation, Karp said that he was only ruling on the “narrow issue” of whether prosecutors proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Fitzsimmons pointed a firearm at Noonan for any “perceptible” amount of time.

“Perhaps the Commonwealth could have easily met its burden if the officers had been wearing body cameras. But under these circumstances, I am left with a reasonable doubt,” he said before announcing the verdict. 

Karp found the testimonies of both Fitzsimmons and Noonan largely credible, he said, noting that this was unusual.  

The bench trial itself presented a unique challenge, Karp said. 

“This has been one of the more exhausting, hardest things I’ve had to do as a judge, as an attorney,” he said. 

Karp also spoke briefly about the dangerous nature of police work and the public frenzy for conspiracies in cases like this. 

“The work of police officers is especially fraught with peril today because of our exceedingly cynical, polarized atmosphere where our citizenry often believes that there is a conspiracy under or around every corner,” he said. “I saw no evidence of a conspiracy in this case.”

Catch up on all the details that occurred before the trial here.

The trial began Monday with opening statements and witness testimony. Noonan and others took the stand on Tuesday. Fitzsimmons herself testified Wednesday before both sides rested their cases.

Closing arguments were delivered Thursday morning. The defense sought to portray Noonan as someone who, after quickly recognizing that he had mistakenly shot Fitzsimmons, claimed that she aimed the weapon at him in an effort to “adjust the narrative.”

The prosecution described Fitzsimmons as a liar and Noonan as a coolheaded professional who made every effort to protect himself and others that day. They focused their argument on the weapon Fitzsimmons used, claiming that her version of events was “scientifically” and “mechanically” impossible. 

Noonan and two other North Andover police officers came to Fitzsimmons’s home to serve her a restraining order that had been granted to Fitzsimmon’s then-fiancé Justin Aylaian. Fitzsimmons and Aylaian had a son in February of 2025, and she has spoken openly about struggling with postpartum depression. 

Fitzsimmons and Aylaian were planning on getting married last October. But, after a joint bachelor/bachelorette weekend in Maine, Aylaian decided to file for a restraining order against Fitzsimmons. He alleged that she had physically attacked him and made comments indicating that she was a threat to herself, to him, and to their child. 

Fitzsimmons maintained that, after being served the restraining order, she was emotionally devastated and decided to attempt suicide. She lied to officers that day about the location of guns in her home, and made other efforts to find time alone with a gun in order to take her own life, she said. Eventually, Fitzsimmons was left alone with Noonan on the second floor of the house. 

In her version of events, Noonan briefly stepped down a few steps away from a landing and out of Fitzsimmons’s point of view. She saw this as her opportunity and grabbed a gun. Fitzsimmons was adamant that she only ever pointed the weapon at her own temple. She pulled the trigger, but there was no round in the chamber. Noonan fired two shots soon afterward, one of which hit her in the chest. 

According to Noonan, Fitzsimmons aimed the gun directly at his face and pulled the trigger. She then backpeddled into the room and attempted to rack a round. Fearing for his life, Noonan pleaded with Fitzsimmons to stop before firing at her, he testified. 

Livestream via NBC10 Boston.

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