Mayor Marty Walsh and the city’s police commissioner are praising the bravery of Boston police officers who responded to a domestic disturbance Wednesday night that turned into a deadly shootout. Two police officers were hit, and the alleged shooter was shot and killed by police.
Police Commissioner William Evans said officers responded to a report of a domestic dispute – possibly over a thermostat setting – Wednesday night at about 10:50 pm. Evans said when they arrived, officers were met by a man at door who claimed his roommate pulled a large knife on him. Officers then went in to the residence, and Evans said 33-year-old Kirk Figueroa emerged wearing body armor and firing at police with what Evans called a tactical shotgun.
27-year veteran officer Richard Cintolo and Officer Matt Morris, who had been with the force for 12 years, were hit. Other officers returned fire.
“Several other officers, immediately with the gunfire going on, moved quickly to the two wounded officers, quickly removed them from the line of fire, and got them out of that premises,” said Evans.
Police applied first aid to both officers, including a tourniquet to Morris’s leg, where a main artery had been severed. Evans said the officers had gotten training on the proper application of tourniquets just last Thursday. He said doctors credit that with saving Morris’s life. Evans said both officers are expected to recover.
“Our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to those individuals,” Evans said. “I got to commend the officers for rushing into there, into that building with no fear whatsoever to rescue to fellow officers.”
Mayor Marty Walsh praised the bravery of the city’s police.
“Around the country, we see what’s happening in different police departments, in different communities,” Walsh said. “And in Boston, this is another example of our police officers doing the right thing, and doing their job, and working collectively together and also working with the community.”
Commissioner Evans urged people to support the Red Cross by donating blood.
“If it wasn’t for the blood that both officers were given quickly last night, I don’t think both officers would have survived.”
Evans said they do not believe Figueroa intended to ambush the police. Evans says Figueroa was not licensed to carry the tactical weapon in Massachusetts.Figueroa was made a Boston city constable in July. Constables serve subpoenas and other court documents.
A car with “ElitePolicing.org” printed on it was towed from the shooting scene Thursday morning. That website lists Figueroa as the founder of the company. The site says the company provides police support, fugitive "apprehension and extradition services" and armored car training.
Figueroa's online bio says he is a former member of a U.S. Army Reserve military police unit, but that's not entirely true.
"Mr. Figueroa never attended basic training or advanced individual training," said Wayne V. Hall, an Army spokesman. "He did enlist in the U.S. Army Reserve in February, 2003, but received a hardship discharge five months later."
Figueroa's website claims he was also a bounty hunter in California and a former corrections officer.
Boston police did a background check when Figueroa applied for the constable license, and Evans said Figueroa had no local criminal record. But Evans said he now understands Figueroa had several felony charges in other state for impersonating a police officer, as well as one charge for arson. Evans said police did not have the legal right to check his record in other states when they did the background check.
District Attorney Conley praised the officers at Thursday’s press conference, but said he will conduct an independent investigation into the use of force, and said he hasn’t made any preconceived judgements .
“We’re going to do our job, as we always do, very thoroughly completely and fairly. And at the end of it, we’re going to release everything to you and to Mr. Figueroa’s family, as we’ve always done.”
Evans said none of the officers at the scene were wearing body cameras, because the East Boston department is not one of the stations currently participating in the pilot program for the cameras. But Evans emphasized that officers must ask permission to turn cameras on when respond to a domestic incident, so he said it’s not clear they would be on in this case.
