A Boston police officer has been charged with manslaughter after fatally shooting a suspected carjacker, with body camera footage reportedly contradicting the officer’s account of the event. Officer Nicholas O’Malley, 33, of Randolph, Massachusetts, was arraigned Thursday in Roxbury District Court and pleaded not guilty. He was released on his own recognizance, pending further court proceedings, with the condition that he surrender all firearms.
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Investigators say O’Malley intentionally fired at 39-year-old Stephenson King during a response to a carjacking reported on Tremont Street. King allegedly assaulted a female passenger, stole her running vehicle, and fled the scene. Police approached the car with weapons drawn, ordering King to comply. Although King partially raised his hands and opened a window, he did not fully comply. According to charging documents, O’Malley warned King before firing three shots through the driver’s side window as the car moved forward.
After the shooting, King drove a short distance before crashing into a stone wall. Despite attempts to save him, King died at the hospital. Investigators found no weapon on King or inside the vehicle. Autopsy results showed King was struck three times, with two bullets recovered from his torso and one inside the car.
Investigators said O’Malley claimed King had tried to run over officers, but the body camera footage and witness statements indicated that neither officer was in the vehicle’s path when O’Malley fired. Prosecutors argue that O’Malley’s belief that his partner was at risk was not reasonable under Massachusetts law, which prohibits shooting at a moving vehicle unless necessary to prevent imminent harm and requires force to be proportionate to the threat.
The Suffolk County District Attorney’s office has withheld the body camera video from public release, citing the ongoing investigation. O’Malley’s next court appearance is scheduled for May. The Boston Police Department has not publicly commented on the case or the footage.
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