Latest news with #FrancisGigliotti
CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
Haverhill, Massachusetts police to release more video related to deadly struggle with Francis Gigliotti
Police in Haverhill, Massachusetts are expected to release new details and video Monday in the controversial death of Francis Gigliotti. Gigliotti, 43, died after a struggle with Haverhill police officers on Friday, July 11. Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker said Gigliotti was "behaving erratically" and then tried to run into a restaurant on Winter Street when officers stopped him. Gigliotti became unresponsive as several police officers tried to restrain him and he was rushed to a hospital where he died. Gigliotti's fiancée, Michele Rooney, said he wasn't erratic or violent during the incident and actually called out for help. A friend said Gigliotti struggled with depression and mental health issues. Seven Haverhill police officers have been put on administrative leave while Tucker's office looks into what happened. The district attorney has been looking for any video or photos from the altercation. Tucker will have an update on the investigation at a news conference at 11 a.m. Monday at his office in Salem. "City of Haverhill video camera footage, as well as independently obtained videos showing Mr. Gigliotti prior to and through the time of his police interaction, will be shared," the district attorney's office said in a statement.
Boston Globe
7 days ago
- Boston Globe
What we know — and don't — about a Haverhill man's death after a run-in with police
Write to us at . To subscribe, . TODAY'S STARTING POINT Last Friday evening, several Haverhill police officers piled atop Francis Gigliotti outside a local restaurant, restraining him as he cried out for help. Gigliotti, 43, became unresponsive during the struggle and Gigliotti's death has prompted protests and calls for accountability. This week, Haverhill police What happened? Advertisement Much of what we know so far has come from eyewitnesses or the district attorney's office in Essex County, which includes Haverhill. Michelle Rooney, Gigliotti's fiancée, that she got a panicked call from Gigliotti asking her to come to Bradford Seafood, a neighborhood restaurant. 'They gonna kill me,' he said, according to Rooney. When she arrived One of Gigliotti's nieces Advertisement What started it? In a statement Saturday, an Essex DA spokesman said police got a call about a man ' When police arrived, the DA's statement continues, Gigliotti fled and tried to go inside Bradford Seafood. The owner claims that Gigliotti was ' What don't we know? A lot, including how Gigliotti died. Haverhill police said yesterday that officers had arrested Joseph Hurley, 43, Whether Gigliotti was experiencing a mental health crisis is another question mark. Friends and family say he had depression, had lost his mother and brother, and at some point had been hit by a bus. But Gigliotti had recently started a roofing company and 'was just getting his life back together,' a niece told Advertisement Others appear to have known Gigliotti struggled, too. Jacques, the bystander, can be heard in the cell phone video he recorded telling police to 'be easy' with Gigliotti because 'he got issues.' One officer looks up and seems to say 'Yes, I know.' The DA's office didn't respond when asked whether police knew of Gigliotti or his mental health challenges beforehand. The police department also has a behavioral health clinician and a social worker What's next? The investigation is ongoing. The district attorney plans to interview the suspended officers and witnesses and has invited people to The incident has also rippled through Haverhill. Residents protested on Sunday, accusing police of excessive force. Others left candles and chalk-written messages honoring Gigliotti outside the restaurant. And some now fear for their own loved ones. Advertisement 'He was in a mental health state. You don't jump on him and hold him down like that,' Linda Rose, the witness who tried to intervene and has three sons who live nearby, told the Globe through tears. 'It could have been one of my boys.' 🧩 2 Down: 92° POINTS OF INTEREST A firefighter tested the third rail for activity after MBTA passengers evacuated a Blue Line train that lost power underground on Tuesday. Wadehey Stranded: A downed wire on the track forced hundreds of Blue Line passengers to evacuate on foot Sweltering: Boston Mayor Michelle Wu Rejected: Kelly Ayotte, New Hampshire's GOP governor, vetoed Republican-backed bills that would have Karen Read: A Dracut woman who sat on the federal grand jury that investigated the state's handling of Read's murder case At the beach: Governor Healey is pushing a measure that could redefine Bureaucratic hassle: Massachusetts' paid family leave law was supposed to help new parents. Higher costs: Inflation picked up last month as President Trump's tariffs began to raise prices on consumer goods. The annual rate is now 2.7 percent, the highest since February. ( Advertisement Retribution: Trump accused Senator Adam Schiff, a California Democrat who led Trump's first impeachment, of possible mortgage fraud and said he needed to be 'brought to justice.' Schiff called it a smear. ( Jeffrey Epstein: House Republicans blocked a Democratic attempt to force the Trump administration to release documents related to the wealthy sex offender. Later, House Speaker Mike Johnson broke with the administration and called for the files' release. ( Immigration: Federal prosecutors have charged more than 100 people in Massachusetts BESIDE THE POINT 📺 Emmy nods: The mind-bending 'Severance' 🦖 Buried treasure: A Denver science museum discovered 67.5-million-year-old dinosaur fossils — under its parking lot. ( ❤️ Love Letters: Their biggest problem has always been in the bedroom. 🐜 Coexist: In the rainforests of Fiji, rival ant colonies cohabitate inside tree-growing tubers thanks to their apartment-like internal geometry. ( 📚 Book talk: Hear Gary Shteyngart discuss his new novel at Brattle Theater next Thursday, and ❓ Bad sign: This mysterious Spanish road sign — an empty white circle with a red border — is confusing some locals and costing foreigners over $200. Here's what it means. ( Advertisement 🪦 RIP: Andrea Gibson, a spoken-word artist born in Maine, wrote poignantly about her gender identity and having terminal cancer. Thanks for reading Starting Point. This newsletter was edited by ❓ Have a question for the team? Email us at ✍🏼 If someone sent you this newsletter, you can 📬 Delivered Monday through Friday. Ian Prasad Philbrick can be reached at
Associated Press
15-07-2025
- Associated Press
7 police officers put on leave after man's restraint death outside fish shop in Boston suburb
HAVERHILL, Mass. (AP) — Seven officers in the Boston suburb of Haverhill are on paid leave after a handcuffed 43-year-old man became unresponsive and died as police tried to restrain him outside a fish market. Officials are seeking video and photos from the public as they investigate the death Friday of Francis Gigliotti. who had been walking into traffic during what his fiancee called a mental health crisis. The officers were not wearing body cameras. Video captured by witnesses showed several officers holding Gigliotti face down as he cries out, although it was not clear how long he was restrained or when he became unresponsive. The U.S. Department of Justice has warned police officers since the mid-1990s to roll suspects off their stomachs as soon as they are handcuffed because of the danger of positional asphyxia. Putting someone on their stomach is not inherently life-threatening. But many policing experts agree that someone can stop breathing if pinned on their chest for too long or with too much weight because it can compress the lungs and put stress on the heart. Fiancee Michelle Rooney said he was unarmed. 'What happened to him was absolutely terrible, and my heart's broken,' she told Boston's NBC10. 'I heard Francis scream as I was running up the hill. But by the time I got there, he wasn't screaming anymore.' Other video the station obtained shows Gigliotti falling onto the sidewalk as he leaves a store, then hitting his head on a parked car and weaving into traffic. Authorities said he was nearly struck several times. In a statement posted Sunday, District Attorney Paul F. Tucker and Haverhill Police Chief Robert Pistone said responding police 'found Gigliotti behaving in an erratic and belligerent manner and called for an ambulance to assess his well-being.' Muriel Enos, Gigliotti's aunt, told WCVB that video of the police encounter horrified her. 'Seven police officers holding one (person) and watching my nephew beg for help,' she said. 'And then listening to his last cry.' Both Mayor Melinda E. Barrett and Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey offered condolences to the family. Barrett promised a transparent investigation. According to Barrett, the city of Haverhill funds both a social worker who works with police on drug intervention and a behavioral health clinician who is embedded in the police department. The behavioral health unit responded to more than 800 calls last year, she said. 'As we mourn, we must also reflect on how we help those in crisis,' said Barrett, who said she hopes to build on these resources and invest in more training and equipment for police.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Yahoo
7 Mass. police officers on paid administrative leave after man dies in police altercation
Seven Haverhill police officers were placed on paid administrative leave on Monday in connection with a man's death following an altercation with police last week, according to multiple media reports. Haverhill Police Chief Robert Pistone told Boston 25 News that an investigation, conducted by Essex District Attorney Paul Tucker's office, into the altercation and the death of Francis Gigliotti, 43, was underway. 'Once the investigation is complete, and all of the facts are known, I will be able to provide more information and address the media and public,' Pistone told the news outlet. Pistone did not release the names of the seven officers on leave. MassLive has reached out to Pistone's office for more information. The altercation happened at around 7:22 p.m. in Haverhill, Tucker's office said previously. Police received a call that a 43-year-old man was 'behaving erratically' at that time near 115 White St., a street with several corner stores and shops. The caller told police that the man had fallen on the floor when he left the building, then began running in the middle of White Street when 'he hit a car with his head,' Tucker's office said. He kept running down the road, and video surveillance footage showed the man 'weaving in and out' of traffic as he was almost hit by multiple cars driving by. The officers 'attempted to restrain the individual for safety purposes and for the safety of the surrounding public,' Tucker's office said. The man and the officers ended up in a physical struggle on the ground outside Bradford Seafood. 'During this encounter, the male party became unresponsive, and first responders attempted lifesaving aid,' Tucker's office said. The man, identified as Gigliotti, was pronounced dead at the hospital after EMS arrived. Tewksbury man photographed woman under business' bathroom stall door, police say Man stole two cars, got into several hit-and-run crashes in Boston, DA says Mass. man indicted after feds say he had sexual abuse videos of children aged 4 to 10 Milford teen crashed car into West Bridgewater building while drunk, police say Springfield double shooting Friday results in 2nd homicide in 2 days Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Yahoo
‘He didn't deserve this': Mass. man who died after police struggle identified
The man who died Friday after being held down by several police officers outside a Haverhill restaurant was identified as Francis Gigliotti by his family members and the city's mayor. "I want to offer my condolences to the family of Francis Gigliotti and assure our community that I am closely monitoring the circumstances around his tragic death," Mayor Melinda E. Barrett said in a statement Saturday night. The Essex District Attorney's Office said the 43-year-old was 'behaving erratically' near 115 White St. and that Haverhill police officers prevented him from entering Bradford Seafood at about 7:22 p.m. Police officers restrained the man, and a physical struggle ensued on the ground outside the restaurant, authorities said, before he became unresponsive. First responders attempted lifesaving aid before he was brought to the hospital and pronounced dead. A Facebook user named Leti Torres identified herself as Gigliotti's niece and shared a video of the incident taken by a bystander. 'Be easy with that boy,' the bystander tells police as he films only feet away. The video captures a chaotic scene with several police officers on top of Gigliotti, sirens wailing and several other bystanders nearby. Gigliotti can be heard yelling out, 'Help,' several times. The bystander filming the police said, 'I don't think it takes all you guys to hold home boy down.' 'We are trying to do it so we don't hurt him,' an officer responds. Another officer tells the person filming to back up and the video ends with the bystander walking away. In a post on Sunday morning, Torres shared a flyer for a protest outside the Haverhill police station. 'Justice for Francis Gigliotti,' the post reads, is scheduled for 1 p.m. 'Join us in honoring the life of Francis Gigliotti and calling for truth, transparency, and accountability,' the post reads. Torres could not be immediately reached for comment on Sunday. A vigil was held outside the Haverhill restaurant for Gigliotti on Saturday night. 'I haven't even watched the video myself,' Gigliotti's niece, Albanee, told NBC Boston. 'Every time I hear the cries, I can't. I just freak out. It's just too much for me.' Gigliotti's fiancée, Michelle Rooney, also responded to the incident. 'I was going to pick him up and it was only literally six minutes from the time I was talking to him until the time I seen him on the ground blue. I can never get that picture out of my head of what I saw,' Rooney told NBC. Gigliotti recently started a roofing company called Teddy Bear Roofing and the business posted a tribute on Facebook after his death. 'It is with unimaginable pain and heartbreak that we share the loss of our co-founder, teammate, and beloved friend, Francis Gigliotti,' the post read. It said the business started less than a month ago after Gigliotti and his business partner worked together for the past four years. 'What we built was more than a company. It was a dream. And it was finally starting to take shape,' the post read. 'Yesterday, Francis's life was tragically taken from us in an act of senseless and brutal force at the hands of Haverhill Police. He was pinned to the ground by eight officers while screaming that he couldn't breathe. He begged for help. And they didn't listen.' MassLive reached out to Teddy Bear Roofing for comment. A 911 caller told police that a man had fallen on the floor when he left a building in the area of 115 White Street, then began running in the middle of the street when 'he hit a car with his head,' the district attorney's office said. He kept running down the road, and video surveillance footage showed the man 'weaving in and out' of traffic as he was almost hit by multiple cars driving by. The man was 'belligerent' toward police officers when they arrived at the scene, the office said, and the authorities called for an ambulance 'to assess his well-being.' However, the man tried to run away from the officers into Bradford Seafood, located at 124 Winter St. The officers 'attempted to restrain the individual for safety purposes and for the safety of the surrounding public,' the district attorney's office said. The incident is under investigation by detectives in the district attorney's office, along with the Haverhill Police Department and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. New England faces 'major heat risk' this upcoming week After long break, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Italian Feast is back (Photos) Generations of Desmarais family gather in Chicopee for 100th reunion Driver injured after crashing into 2 Springfield homes Mass. beach closures: Nearly 40 beaches closed on Sunday, July 13 Read the original article on MassLive.
