Overview
- Boston police officer Nicholas O’Malley shot and killed Stephenson King on March 11, O’Malley was later indicted on manslaughter charges, and his trial is scheduled for next spring.
- Lawyers for Civil Rights filed suit in Suffolk Superior Court on Aug. 4–5 asking the court to declare the body-worn and dashcam videos public and to order their immediate release.
- The Boston Police Department and the Suffolk DA have denied records requests by citing the state’s investigatory exemption, and a Superior Court judge granted a July impound order that seals the videos until trial.
- Prosecutors say the footage shows no one in front of King’s car when O’Malley fired and that the officer’s claim he was about to be run over is not supported, while King’s family and their attorneys say viewing the video is essential for public accountability.
- The dispute has become a major local political issue, with candidates promising new disclosure rules if elected and the lawsuit poised to test when police video must be released and what that could mean for transparency in officer-involved deaths.