Investigation into Fatal Officer-Involved Shooting in Burlington Complete

BURLINGTON – Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan has announced that, following an inquest, Judge Shelby M. Smith has issued her findings. Judge Smith found that:

“Applying the credible evidence to the applicable case law pertaining to the use of deadly force in defense of oneself or others, the court finds that the decision of Officer Reyes to engage with the less-than-lethal shotgun was objectively reasonable upon Mr. Courtemanche’s initial approach, within the meaning of Graham v. Connor. Officer Miedico fired her weapon after Mr. Courtemanche was not subdued by the less lethal shot and continued toward her at a quick pace, armed with a knife. Any reasonable law enforcement officer in the same position would reasonably believe that she was in imminent danger of being seriously injured or killed. At that moment no reasonable alternative existed, except for the use of deadly force.

The court finds that a reasonable prudent person would not find that the actions of Officer Miedico make her criminally responsible for the tragic death of Mr. Courtemanche, or that she is otherwise criminally responsible.”

District Attorney Ryan has adopted the findings of the inquest and a certificate of no prosecution has been filed.

The findings and the complete transcript of the inquest proceedings into the death of Paul Courtemanche can be found here.

On January 23, 2022, at approximately 12:08 p.m., Burlington Police received a 911 call from Paul Courtemanche. He told the officer on the 911 call that he had a knife, that he didn’t know how he was feeling, that he was unsure how he would respond when officers arrived, and that he would not put the knife down. Paul Courtemanche remained on the phone throughout the incident. 

Multiple Burlington Firefighters and Police Officers were dispatched to Lord Baron Apartments on Baron Park Lane and instructed to wait outside until the arrival of additional personnel. While Officers Robert Reyes and Aurise Miedico were staging outside near their cruisers, Mr. Courtemanche, still on the open line, came out of the building wielding a very large knife (approximately 8-10 inches long) over his head and quickly advanced towards the officers.  Both officers issued verbal commands for him to put the knife down, which he ignored.  Officer Reyes fired a less than lethal round at Mr. Courtemanche, which struck him.  However, he did not respond to being struck and continued advancing towards Officer Miedico.  Officer Miedico was moving backwards from Mr. Courtemanche in an effort to distance herself from him. Officer Miedico tripped and fell backwards to the ground.  Paul Courtemanche was over Miedico as she fell backwards, still advancing with the knife.  At that point, Officer Miedico fired her weapon twice, striking and killing Paul Courtemanche.

The inquest commenced on January 11, 2023  and concluded on January 13, 2023.  The Court heard testimony from ten witnesses and reviewed sixty exhibits. 

In December, 2018 to ensure a complete and unbiased review of fatal officer-involved shootings, District Attorney Ryan began the practice of requesting inquests for these incidents.   An inquest is a judicial proceeding conducted for the purpose of finding the facts and circumstances surrounding a death and determining whether a crime has occurred. Although the proceeding is closed to the public, both the officer(s) involved in the shooting and the family of the decedent are allowed to be present and may participate as permitted by the court to ensure fairness.  At the conclusion of the inquest, the judge is required to issue detailed written findings which are then sent to the District Attorney who decides whether to pursue criminal charges.  At the conclusion of the case the judge’s findings and the transcripts of the entire inquest proceeding are publicly available as well as additional records, photos and audio recordings from the proceeding.