LEOMINSTER — On Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, at approximately 2:55 p.m. the Leominster Police Department received a 911 call from an unidentified male who would not provide any information to dispatch other than the address of 209 Union Street.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Statement of Facts submitted by the Leominster Police Department to Leominster District Court and a Supplemental Narrative of Detective Shane Crawford. They do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“The caller hung up moments later with no further information regarding the reason for the call,” the Statement of Facts filed by the Leominster Police Department states.
The Leominster police department dispatched two officers to the residence to investigate further.
“Upon arrival, officers were unable to make contact with anyone inside the residence, but were able to enter through an unlocked side door,” the Statement of Facts states.
Upon entry, the officers observed an unresponsive person seated on a couch in the living room with a blanket covering the majority of their body. A male party, later identified as James Marsh, was sitting next to the unresponsive person on the couch while holding a silver firearm. After one of the responding officers, Tiffany Beaupre, asked Marsh if he was okay, he allegedly pointed the gun at her.
According to police, James Embury Marsh, 64, is a resident of 209 Union Street in Leominster, MA.
“Officers retreated from the residence and requested additional assistance,” the Statement of Facts states.
After the officers left, Marsh barricaded himself inside his residence. During the ensuing standoff, Leominster police (including drone units), members of the Massachusetts State Police Special Tactical Operations (STOP) Unit, including hostage negotiation personnel, and state police detectives arrived on scene and formed a perimeter.
After several hours, at approximately 7:29 p.m., Marsh voluntarily exited the residence and was placed under arrest by the state police STOP team on a charge of assault with a dangerous weapon for allegedly pointing his firearm at Leominster Police Officer Tiffany Beaupre during her initial encounter with him inside the home. Marsh was also charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, serious bodily injury.
After Marsh was taken into custody, police conducted a protective sweep of the home and determined the deceased person on the couch, covered by a blanket, was 62-year-old Ann Marsh.
“The decedent exhibited obvious signs of death, and she was officially pronounced deceased at 7:45 p.m.,” the Statement of Facts states. “The decedent had sustained significant trauma to her facial area, with an injury consistent with a bullet or projectile. All first responders exited the home pending the issuance of a search warrant for the residence. It should be noted that no other individuals were located inside the residence during this process.”
At approximately 9:30 p.m., members of the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit – Worcester County and Leominster police executed a search warrant of the residence.
“Several items of evidentiary value were recovered inside the residence, to include a shotgun located on a bed inside a second-floor bedroom and a discharged shotgun shell cartridge located on a dresser inside the same bedroom,” the Statement of Facts said. “A cell phone belonging to the decedent was located on the kitchen counter. It was also seized as evidence, and it was later discovered that the phone was covered in a red-brown substance consistent with blood. Based on this information, it was determined that this device had been removed from the area of the decedent after an act of violence occurred.”
On Sunday, Dec. 29, 2025, an autopsy of Ann Marsh was performed at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) in Westfield, Massachusetts.
“The decedent was examined by OCME Dr. Robert Welton who provided a preliminary cause of death as a gunshot wound to the face and neck, not believed to be self-inflicted,” the Statement of Facts states. “Several fragments consistent with buckshot projectiles and a plastic cap and wadding were located inside the decedent, consistent with a round discharged from a shotgun.”
The Leominster Police Department said that Dr. Welton ruled Ann Marsh’s manner of death as “pending,” but indicated that the nature and angle of the injury sustained by the decedent was consistent with an act of homicide.
“Based on the facts and circumstances provided above, there is probable cause to believe that on or about Dec. 26, 2025, James Marsh murdered Ann Marsh,” the Statement of Facts states. The Leominster Police Department then requested an additional criminal complaint to charge James Marsh with murder.
James Marsh was arraigned in Leominster District Court on Dec. 29, 2025. During his arraignment, the charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery with dangerous weapon, serious bodily injury, were dismissed without prejudice upon the Commonwealth’s request. Following his arraignment, Marsh was held pending a dangerousness hearing.
On Jan. 2, 2026, Marsh was arraigned in Leominster District Court on the murder charge. Following his arraignment, he was held without bail.
Marsh’s next court date is a probable cause hearing scheduled for Feb. 18, 2026.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the arrest in this story took place in December, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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