MALDEN, MASS. (WHDH) - Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced he will not file charges against a state trooper who shot a knife-wielding man in Malden last November.
A Massachusetts state police trooper opened fire on 62-year-old Steven Brawley on Nov. 12 near the intersection of Beach and Oliver streets. At the time, Brawley had been dragged to the ground by a Malden police officer and the trooper was attempting to disarm him.
Brawley then lunged at the trooper in what appeared to be an attempted slash or stab him.
Despite suffering a gunshot wound to the chest, the trooper said Brawley appeared to be unfazed and got up, folded his knife back into his pocket, and tried to walk away.
As he was arrested, investigators said he tried to swing at the trooper again but was unsuccessful and they administered first aid to him until emergency crews arrived.
The incident began at the Squire Road Stop & Shop in Revere where Brawley became irate during an interaction at the customer service desk and struck an assistant manager with a shopping cart several times, causing bruising to her leg, according to a release issued by Quinn’s office.
The assistant manager said after she told him to leave the store, he spat in her face and said, “I’m going to end your life.”
She and two other employees followed him out of the store and down the street while waiting for police. Along the way, they noticed the trooper’s vehicle and approached him for help while he was waiting for his lunch order.
The trooper said he followed Brawley, who then brandished his knife as a group of onlookers formed.
“The investigation determined Brawley’s own actions created a situation justifying the Trooper’s use of lethal force. Further review of Brawley’s actions on the day in question, as well as his overall history, reveal him to display erratic, violent, aggressive, and hostile behavior, which includes direct assaults on strangers and threats, including threats to kill,” the release read.
Neither the trooper nor the Malden police officer who later arrived had a Tazer in their possession.
Brawley survived the shooting and is facing several charges.
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