On Tuesday, February 10, 2026, Boston.com reported that North Andover police officer Kelsey Fitzsimmons, who was shot by a colleague in June of the previous year, filed a motion seeking the recusal of Judge Kathleen McCarthy-Neyman from her trial, alleging bias.
The motion, filed in Essex Superior Court, asserts that Judge McCarthy-Neyman has demonstrated prejudice against Fitzsimmons. According to the motion, McCarthy-Neyman made a “subjective personal” determination that Fitzsimmons poses a danger and has a vested interest in the trial’s outcome. Fitzsimmons’s legal representatives also cite alleged interactions between the judge and an assistant probation officer as evidence of bias.
The motion details an incident in September when McCarthy-Neyman visited the probation officer’s office, a day before a hearing concerning Fitzsimmons’s compliance with her probation terms. The officer reportedly informed McCarthy-Neyman that Fitzsimmons had not violated the terms of her release and had exchanged emails with Fitzsimmons’s lawyers. These emails were described as “favorable to the defense.” The motion states that McCarthy-Neyman became upset and abruptly left the office following this exchange.
Fitzsimmons’s lawyers contend that the judge’s visit to the probation officer’s office and the subsequent investigation, conducted without the presence of defense counsel, off the record, and without disclosure to the defense, lacked legal justification.
Following the shooting, Fitzsimmons was briefly released on conditions that included regular alcohol testing. However, injuries sustained during the shooting prevented her from safely completing the test, leading McCarthy-Neyman to order her return to jail due to non-compliance.
During a hearing, McCarthy-Neyman allegedly “vilified” the probation officer, left the bench while Fitzsimmons’s lawyers were addressing the court, and appeared “visibly shaking and angry,” according to the recusal motion.
McCarthy-Neyman has not commented on the allegations. A court spokesperson informed The Boston Globe of this development.
The shooting involving Fitzsimmons occurred in late June when three other North Andover police officers arrived at her home to serve a restraining order. At the time, Fitzsimmons was on leave after giving birth earlier in 2025. She has publicly spoken about struggling with postpartum depression.
The restraining order was filed by Fitzsimmons’s former fiancé, the father of her child, who stated in an affidavit that her erratic behavior led him to fear that she could be a danger to herself, him, and the baby.
Conflicting accounts exist regarding the circumstances of the shooting. The NAPD officer who shot Fitzsimmons claimed he did so out of fear for his life after she allegedly pulled a gun from a hidden location and attempted to shoot him. Fitzsimmons maintains that she never aimed the weapon at the other officer and instead made a “halfhearted attempt” to take her own life.
After being hospitalized for 53 days, Fitzsimmons was ordered to return to jail in September but remained in custody until late December, when her injuries had healed sufficiently to allow her to comply with alcohol testing.
Fitzsimmons’s lawyers argue that McCarthy-Neyman improperly ordered her held without bail under the state’s dangerousness law and wrongly prohibited her from seeing her child. They further contend that McCarthy-Neyman, as a North Andover homeowner, has a vested interest in the town’s financial security and reputation. They argue that potential civil litigation pursued by Fitzsimmons could expose the town to “substantial financial liability,” leading to property tax increases and creating an economic interest for McCarthy-Neyman that could affect the trial’s outcome.
Fitzsimmons faces one charge of assault with a dangerous weapon. A hearing on the recusal motion is scheduled for March 9, and her jury trial is set to begin on March 23.
Source: Boston.com
