SALEM, Mass. (Court TV) — Attorneys for a former police officer accused of threatening fellow officers have filed a motion asking a judge to recuse herself from the case.
Kelsey Fitzsimmons (R) stands in court during a pretrial hearing on Feb. 9, 2026. (Court TV)
Kelsey Fitzsimmons is charged with a single count of assault with a dangerous weapon after allegedly pointing a gun at a colleague from the North Andover Police Department while he was at her home serving her with a restraining order. Fitzsimmons was shot in the chest; she has said, through her attorney, that she was suffering from postpartum depression and raised the gun to hurt herself and not to threaten anyone else.
While court records initially listed Fitzsimmons’ case as assigned to Judge Thomas Dreschler, who has presided over some hearings, most substantive hearings have instead been before Judge Kathleen McCarthy-Neyman. Now, Fitzsimmons’ attorney wants Judge McCarthy-Neyman to recuse herself from the case.
At the time of Fitzsimmons’ initial arrest and arraignment, Judge McCarthy-Neyman was assigned to hear civil cases. Nonetheless, she appeared on the bench when Fitzsimmons appeared in court. “Without notice to the parties or the public, it appears she has specially assigned herself to this case,” Fitzsimmons’ defense attorney, Tim Bradl, wrote in his motion. “The assignment seems inexplicable on the merits of the case, and raises questions about the motive of the Court as to undermine the public’s confidence in the ongoing adjudication.”
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In a footnote, Fitzsimmons’ defense questioned why Judge McCarthy-Neyman has taken an interest in the case, speculating on whether there is a familial relationship with the alleged victim, given the shared name “McCarthy.”
Bradl said in his motion that the hearings over which Judge McCarthy-Neyman has presided have shown her to be biased in both her demeanor and actions. In one hearing, the judge “made a subjective personal finding that Ms. Fitzsimmons is a dangerous person,” Bradl wrote. He also noted that Judge McCarthy-Neyman wrote an order explicitly forbidding Fitzsimmons from seeing her infant, regardless of any determinations made in family court.
The motion alleges that the judge held an ex parte meeting with Assistant Chief Probation Officer Jeff January the day before a critical hearing in September. On Sept. 10, Judge McCarthy-Neyman allegedly visited January at his office, seeking to investigate Fitzsimmons, but learned that there had been no violations since she had been out on bond. The next day, Sept. 11, Judge McCarthy-Neyman revoked Fitzsimmons’ bail and remanded her to custody. Following that hearing, the judge allegedly filed a complaint against January, which “included accusations of the defense counsel ‘colluding’ with probation.”
Now, Fitzsimmons’ attorney says that even beyond the alleged bias the judge has shown, the fact that she is embroiled in a complaint that will necessitate his testifying on January’s behalf should preclude McCarthy-Neyman from presiding over the case.
Fitzsimmons is due back in court on March 9, where the issue is expected to be addressed.
