By Jill Harmacinski
The Eagle-Tribune
LAWRENCE, Mass. — A city firefighter who allegedly shot himself in the leg with a .357 Magnum during an off-duty incident at his home will remain held without bail.
Lawrence District Court Judge Holly Broadbent sided with a prosecutor and deemed Joseph Carberry, 39, a danger and denied him bail after a hearing Friday.
Carberry was brought into the courtroom Friday in a wheelchair with bandaging wrapped around his right leg.
A Lawrence fire lieutenant, Carberry was also arraigned Friday on additional charge of carrying a firearm while intoxicated.
On Tuesday afternoon, in his Lawrence General Hospital room, Carberry was arraigned on charges of illegal discharge of a firearm within 500 feet of a building, assault with a dangerous weapon, disorderly conduct and threats.
At 12:33 Tuesday morning, police said they were called to Carberry’s 11 South Boylston St. home for a report of a distraught male. Carberry was home alone.
Carberry allegedly had an argument with his wife and threatened to “beat her beyond recognition” and also tried to pry open a locked gun safe in his home where numerous weapons were stored, according to court papers.
When officers arrived at Carberry’s home, they heard gun shots in the house and had to shoot a dog, a bull mastiff, who was aggressive towards them, police said.
Officers said they saw Carberry standing in the door of his home and bleeding from his right leg. He was ordered out of the house and to the ground, a command he immediately complied with, police said.
“I could see he had a severe wound to his leg. There was a lot of blood coming from it,” police Sgt. Shawn Quaglietta testified Friday during the dangerousness hearing. Prosecutor Lindsay Nasson called Quaglietta to the stand as a witness.
Carberry was arrested and charged and taken to Lawrence General Hospital. The dog was taken to Bulger Animal Hospital for treatment of “non-life threatening injuries,” according to a police report.
Police Lt. James Raso also testified Friday at the request of prosecution. Raso said he was working Tuesday morning when he got a call from Officer Charles Saindon, who is the brother of Carberry’s wife.
He said Saindon told him help was needed at 11 South Boylston St. and “it’s a real emergency,” Raso testified.
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Saindon told him Carberry was “trying to get the gun to possibly kill himself,” Raso said.
Numerous members of Carberry’s family along with fellow firefighters attended Friday’s hearing to support him, said Donald Bongiovi, Carberry’s defense attorney.
Bongiovi said, in the wake of the incident, Carberry’s wife is not looking to have him held in jail and she did not file for a restraining order against him.
And, he said, Carberry has never been charged with any kind of violent crime in the past.
If he was released on bail, Bongiovi suggested the judge could set conditions, including Carberry would not consume alcohol, not obtain additional firearms and seek a mental health evaluation and treatment. He also said Carberry’s parents agreed he could come live with them.
Bongiovi also made a point to note “the large number of fellow firefighters who are supportive of him.”
Tuesday morning, police seized a dozen firearms from Carberry’s home, including a .357 Magnum and others stored in the gun safe.
Nasson, the prosecutor, stressed Carberry poses a danger to the community. She noted that during Tuesday morning’s incident, after the police were notified, Carberry allegedly said, “Bad move. I am not going down like this.”
She described him “at present, as a desperate and unpredictable individual.”
Carberry is currently listed as on sick leave from the fire department.
He is due back in court on Sept. 22 for a pre-trial conference.
Copyright 2016 The Eagle-Tribune