BOSTON (AP) - A Boston man facing 21 counts of attempted murder for allegedly opening fire on police during the violence in the city early Monday morning has been ruled a danger to society by a judge and held for four months without bail, prosecutors said.
John Boampong, 37, of the city’s Dorchester neighborhood, fired on police because he was upset police hit his car’s windshield as they tried to stop him from backing into another vehicle, Suffolk Assistant District Attorney Caitlin Fitzgerald said at Wednesday’s remotely held hearing.
The gunfire came early Monday during the violent aftermath of protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
No one was struck.
Defense attorney Gerasimos Antzoulatos said authorities cannot meet the legal requirement of proving his client intended to shoot at anyone and asked that the charges be dismissed. He said Boampong could not have been the shooter because a building blocks the path a bullet would have had to take.
He asked that his client be released on $10,000 bail and said Boampong lost his job at a Boston sports bar because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Boampong pleaded not guilty to 21 counts of armed assault with intent to murder and several other charges.
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