Off-duty Brookline Police officer allegedly pulls gun on two unarmed suspects

BROOKLINE, Mass. - A Brookline Police officer is under investigation for allegedly using his personal vehicle to conduct a traffic stop and pulling a gun on two unarmed suspects.

The police report of the incident says the suspects hit the off-duty officer's truck and tried to make a run for it.

It is unknown if the officer tried to call the incident in himself, but he pursued the two suspects on his own and pointed his personal firearm at the two.

Police say the incident initially appeared to be a case of road rage, and then ended up involving one of their own.

"We got a lot of calls," Lieutenant Philip Harrington said. "Somebody was displaying a gun on Route 9 at some other subjects stopped in traffic."

Police say the two suspects struck the passenger side of the officer's car around 4 p.m. on Wednesday, and say they initially acted like they would pull over.

However, they then took off before the officer eventually went after them in his personal car.

"The officer determined there was really no effort to pull over, and they were actually fleeing the crash scene," Harrington said.

Police say the pursuit blew through a red light, where pedestrians were almost run over before the officer finally caught up to the car near Hammond Street.

"The off-duty officer followed the subject, and due to heavy traffic that time of day, was able to stop the car and approach while in traffic," Harrington said.

Police say the officer then got out of his truck, drew his personal gun and conducted the traffic stop. He also allegedly placed one suspect in handcuffs as other officers arrived.

Now, the actions are under investigation.

"Anytime an officer utilizes or displays a use of force, we take it very serious, regardless of what the circumstances may or may not be," Harrington said. "This will be investigated."

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Police say there are use of force policies, along with off-duty conduct policies that may have been violated in the case.

The officer, who has been on the force since 2015, was reassigned to administrative duty, while the suspects received multiple citations and will get a court summons.

Cox Media Group