Saugus Mom Fatally Shot By Police: Friends Question Use Of Force

SAUGUS, MA — A Saugus mother of two was shot and killed in her home Saturday afternoon.

On Saturday, police responded to a call for a woman in distress from a home on Alfred Road, and when they arrived police say 38-year-old Stephanie Gerardi was waving a knife, according to the Essex District Attorney's Office.

One of the Saugus police officers then fired his department-issued gun three times, striking Gerardi, the District Attorney's office reports.

Jamie DiGiantommaso, the organizer of Gerardi's GoFundMe page, says Saugus police were aware of Gerardi's mental illness, as the organizer says they had assisted her before, but this time they shot at her instead of helping.

The other officers immediately tried to assist her, along with emergency medical crews who were already on the scene due to the nature of the call, but Gerardi died from her injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

"They were familiar with her illness and instead of helping Stephanie or ensuring she was placed in a facility that could help her, a police officer shot her three times to death in her home in front of her traumatized family," DiGiantommaso says in the GoFundMe. "The family was then told to leave their home and provided them with no help or resources."

The officer who shot Gerardi has been placed on administrative leave, per department policy. His name has not been released.

The officers involved were not injured but were transported to a local hospital as a precaution.

Multiple stations have reported family and friends of Gerardi are questioning the police officer's response.

Gerardi's friend Lauren Ciccia is upset and demanding answers, NBC10 reported. "She was mentally in distress and they just needed to give her help and they called the only people available to help," said Ciccia.

"I think they could have tased her. They could've taken her down, but they didn't have to kill her," says Wendy Smith, Gerardi's neighbor, as reported by WCVB.

More details around what led up to the officer firing his gun three times at Gerardi have not been shared, but the DA's office says it will release its findings to the public once the investigation is completed.