NORTH ANDOVER — An off-duty North Andover police officer was shot by a colleague during a confrontation at her home Monday evening as officers attempted to serve her a court-approved restraining order.
The incident took place at approximately 6:30 p.m., on Phillips Brooks Road, where three on-duty North Andover officers — including a supervisor — arrived to serve the order to 28-year-old Officer Kelsey Fitzsimmons. While an officer was “escorting” Fitzsimmons during the interaction, an “armed conflict” occurred, prompting one of the responding officers to fire their weapon and strike her once, according to Essex District Attorney Paul Tucker.
The officer who fired the shot has over 20 years of experience on the force.
Fitzsimmons received immediate medical attention at the scene and was airlifted to a Boston-area hospital. As of Tuesday morning, she was listed in stable condition.
Tucker described restraining order service as one of the most dangerous duties officers face, stating, “Serving court-approved restraining orders are sometimes some of the most dangerous duties that police officers encounter, no matter who the object of that order is.”
Tucker confirmed that Fitzsimmons was being served a standard restraining order that would have required her to surrender any firearms in her possession. However, both he and North Andover Police Chief Charles Gray declined to comment on whether she was armed at the time, or who had filed the order.
Fitzsimmons was on administrative leave at the time of the incident, a status that officials said will now be extended. The North Andover Police Department does not use body cameras, Gray confirmed, and officials did not say whether anyone else was present in the home during the incident.
No charges have been filed as of Tuesday, though Tucker said state police detectives are actively investigating, and that criminal charges remain a possibility.
According to court documents, Fitzsimmons was denied her Firearms Identification Card (FID) earlier this year and had filed a petition in Lawrence District Court seeking to have it reinstated. She withdrew that petition last Friday.
Fitzsimmons joined the North Andover Police Department in May 2024. Before that, she worked as a corrections officer with the Essex County Sheriff’s Department, and attended Fisher College and the Massachusetts School of Law.
Fitzsimmons, who served as president of the Criminal Justice Club at Fisher College, had reportedly reconsidered a law enforcement career after going on ride-alongs with the Methuen Police Department as an intern and intended to pursue a career in law, according to Boston.com.
“There are lots of interviews to be done,” Tucker said during a press conference on July 1, 2025. “There are lots of pieces to be put together. There’s lots of things that remain unanswered.”
