Following a number of charges brought by Harvard police on Jan. 1, John J. Fitzsimmons was arraigned in Clinton District Court Monday, Jan. 24.
Harvard police had charged Fitzsimmons with attempted murder, aggravated assault and battery, domestic assault and battery, possession of a firearm without a license, and improper storage of a firearm after responding to a 911 call from Fitzsimmons' home Jan. 1.
An earlier report that he was also charged with violating a restraining order proved to be incorrect. Although the police log entry recorded the call as "domestic abuse and violation of a restraining order," Police Chief Ed Denmark explained to the Press last week that the entry was a UCR code—uniform crime report code—a standard category for logging a domestic call, and that there was no restraining order in place at the time the call was made. However, an emergency restraining order was issued the night of the incident.
After his arrest, Fitzsimmons was held in custody at Bridgewater State Hospital for 20 days for a psychiatric evaluation.
During the Jan. 24 arraignment, Assistant District Attorney Erin Donnelly told the presiding judge, Martha Scannell Brennan, that the details in the case were "disturbing at best," and argued that Fitzsimmons be held on $10,000 cash bail. She recommended that upon his release he be fitted with a GPS monitoring device.
Defense attorney Neil Tassel countered that the Jan. 1 incident was a "psychiatric episode," and said that there was no prior history of violence in the family. He said that Fitzsimmons' behavior on Jan. 1 was "completely out of character" and suggested that it could have been related to an issue with dosage in medication Fitzsimmons was taking.
Tassel pointed out that the psychiatric report from Bridgewater had come back "clean," and told the court that Fitzsimmons had been a good family man who was very involved in the lives of his children and in the community. He told the court that the firearms charges related to an antique black-powder gun and a BB gun that a relative had given the family as keepsakes for the children. He said the guns, which were kept in a closet, were not loaded, and there was no ammunition in the house.
Tassel also noted that the court case file contained three letters of support for Fitzsimmons. Based on this, he said, Fitzsimmons should be released on his own recognizance and, he added, "There is no history to suggest GPS monitoring is appropriate."
However, the judge ultimately favored the use of the GPS device and agreed to release him on his own recognizance after he was fitted with the GPS unit.
Tim Connelly, a spokesperson for the office of District Attorney Joseph Early Jr., told the Press last week that, based on the results of Fitzsimmons' psychiatric evaluation, he does not pose a threat to the community.
In a conversation with the Press during a recess from the arraignment hearing, Tassel reiterated that there had never been a history of violence in the family, and said, "Some people believe the Harvard police were heavy-handed" in their response to the incident.
Asked last week if police officers overreacted in the case, Denmark said, "Absolutely not. Any time we respond to a domestic violence call we exercise caution to prevent the situation from becoming more dangerous."
Denmark said that four officers responded to the call, including two from Harvard, one from Stow, and one from Boxborough.
He said, "Based on what I read in the report, they handled it perfectly. In fact, I think they acted with considerable restraint, under the circumstances."
Regarding the firearms charges, Denmark said that it is standard procedure in a domestic violence case for responding officers to inquire about weapons. He said the officers asked the victim if there were weapons in the house and were told about the black powder gun and the BB gun. Police confiscated both guns, neither of which was licensed.
Last week Tassel told the Press that, unless the terms of the restraining order are modified, the order is in force for one year, and it orders Fitzsimmons to stay away from the house.
A pretrial hearing in the case is set for March 18. Tassel said there could be a series of pretrial hearings, and noted that it could take six to nine months for the case to reach a disposition. He said that a big factor in the case will be "for the commonwealth to be comfortable that there was no criminal intent."
