Haverhill man shot by police scheduled for court appearance
May 6—A Haverhill man who police say they were forced to shoot after he threatened them with a machete, gun and crossbow will be back in court for a pretrial hearing.
Jimmy Andino, 48, of 23 Thorndike St., Apt. 1, was indicted Jan. 27 on three counts of assault and battery on a household member, three counts of assault and battery on a pregnant woman, kidnapping, and nine counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, according to the Essex County District Attorney's Office.
Andino was found dangerous and held without bail following his arraignment in Haverhill District Court on Oct. 20, 2020, and in Superior Court on March 22. Andino was still being held as of a week ago, according to the Essex County Sheriff's Office.
His case is scheduled for a pretrial conference May 11 in Salem Superior Court.
Carrie Kimball, spokesperson for Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett, said Andino was charged with nine counts of assault with a dangerous weapon for allegedly brandishing a gun — resembling a Glock pistol but later found to be a BB gun — a crossbow and a machete at three Haverhill police officers who responded to his home for a domestic dispute. The other charges are related to a domestic violence incident involving his pregnant fiancee, Kimball said.
Details from police report
A woman living at 23 Thorndike St. called 911 on May 22, 2020, at 4:58 a.m. to say her boyfriend, Andino, was drunk and wouldn't let her leave their apartment, according to an investigator's report.
The apartment building is at the intersection of Lafayette and Thorndike streets, off Hilldale Avenue and just north of Lafayette Square.
The woman, now 28, later told police that she and Andino had been dating for about two years, were engaged, and she was pregnant with Andino's child, according to the report.
The woman told police Andino drank alcohol to excess, especially after losing his job. She also said he was not taking his medication prescribed for depression, the report said.
She also told police that Andino had been sent to jail several months earlier because of a physical altercation between them.
The girlfriend said that the night before the incident, Andino was upset their pet parakeet died. She said he began drinking and became argumentative, according to the report.
She told investigators that in the early morning hours of May 22, she was asleep in the nursery when Andino woke her, spoke to her angrily and then slapped her.
The woman said she attempted to leave in her car to go to her father's house in Merrimac, but Andino stopped her. She said he slapped her and punched her in the face, then dragged her from the car and tried to tamper with the car's battery, the report said.
The woman told investigators that the couple returned to their apartment and the woman told Andino she was going to call police. She told police that Andino responded by saying, "Let me go out with a bang."
Police arrive
Officers Jonathan Pierce and Cory Baldera, as well as Sgt. Tiffany Maldonado, answered the call.
After announcing his presence and receiving no response, Baldera entered the first-floor apartment where Andino and his girlfriend live, the report said, followed by Pierce and Maldonado.
Andino confronted Baldera and pointed what appeared to be a gun at him, the report said.
Maldonado told investigators that Andino was screaming profanities at the officers, and then, said "I'm going to shoot you" and "I'm going to kill you."
Maldonado told Pierce to move to the Lafayette Street entrance of the home to prevent Andino from leaving, while Baldera remained at the Thorndike Street entrance, the report said.
Andino walked to the Lafayette Street side door and was confronted by Pierce. From the street, Pierce repeatedly ordered Andino to drop his weapon, the report said.
Andino moved in and out of the building onto a small deck near the Lafayette Street side entrance, the report said.
In addition to a gun, Andino was holding a machete as he yelled profanities at Pierce and said, "I want to die, shoot me," according to the report.
Andino's girlfriend told police she shouted to the officers that Andino's gun was not real.
As Baldera approached Andino, who was standing on the landing, he holstered his firearm and retrieved his Taser, the report said.
After Andino ignored his commands to drop his weapons, Baldera fired his Taser at Andino, according to the report. Police said the Taser had no effect.
Andino then picked up a crossbow and attempted to shoot an arrow at Baldera, according to the report.
Andino's first attempt to shoot his crossbow failed, and when he tried a second time to shoot an arrow at the officers — who told investigators they feared for their lives — all three fired their duty firearms at Andino, the report said.
Police said Andino was struck several times by bullets.
The officers began lifesaving measures, the report said.
Officer Conor Clark provided aid to Andino, who he said suffered multiple gunshot wounds to his legs, stomach and arms, the report said.
Clark told investigators that Andino refused treatment and told him to "stop" and to "get off of me."
Andino was taken by ambulance to Lawrence General Hospital, where he was treated before being transported to Boston Medical Center.
According to the report, the three officers who fired at Andino handed their duty weapons to Haverhill police, who turned them over to the Massachusetts State Police Firearms Identification Section for analysis.
Kimball said at the time that the shooting was under investigation. When it became apparent that Andino would survive, the investigation was halted. She said it is not standard practice for her office to investigate nonfatal police shootings.
"We are only involved when there is a fatality," she said.
