Overview
- Lawyers for Civil Rights filed suit in Suffolk Superior Court on August 4 seeking a judicial order to release body‑worn and dashboard‑camera recordings from the March 11 Roxbury shooting that killed Stephenson King.
- The Boston Police Department and the Suffolk DA have denied public‑records requests, citing Massachusetts’ investigatory exemption and a July 23 protective order that limits public dissemination before O’Malley’s trial.
- Officer Nicholas O’Malley has been indicted on manslaughter charges and has pleaded not guilty, with prosecutors saying the impounded footage supports their account that no one was in front of King’s car as it fled.
- King’s family, represented by Benjamin Crump, say he was in a mental‑health crisis before the encounter and were allowed to view the video earlier this year, while O’Malley’s lawyers say he fired to protect a fellow officer.
- The suit could influence pretrial evidence rules and transparency policy in Suffolk County, where the charging decision and withheld footage have become a focal point in the DA race and public debate.