Salem man pleads guilty to 2013 Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary shooting of Middlesex deputy sheriff during escape attempt
BOSTON, May 5, 2023 –RAYMOND WALLACE, 46, of Salem pleaded guilty today in Suffolk Superior Court to numerous assault and battery, firearms and escape charges related to a 2013 escape attempt in which he shot a Middlesex deputy sheriff after being transported to Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston for treatment of an injury sustained at the Middlesex Jail in Cambridge, District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced.
Judge Peter Krupp ordered Wallace to a prison sentence of not less than 12 years and not more than 12 years and a day on the charges, to be served concurrently with a 16-18 year Essex County sentence Wallace is already serving for violation of probation. Krupp also ordered Wallace to serve two to three years on the attempted escape charge, to be served consecutively with the 12 years to 12-and-a-day sentence.
With today’s sentences the earliest parole eligibility date for Wallace is March 2027.
Assistant District Attorney Lynn Feigenbaum argued for a 13-15 year sentence to be served consecutively with the Essex sentence, which would have kept Wallace in prison well into the next decade.
On July 31, 2013, two Middlesex deputy sheriffs escorted Wallace to the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston for treatment of an injury sustained at the Middlesex Jail. Wallace attempted to escape and grabbed for a deputy’s gun. One of the deputies was shot in the leg in the ensuing struggle. The second deputy shot Wallace in the chest.
Wallace has been in Department of Correction hospital custody, primarily at the Lemuel Shattuck Hospital Correctional Unit in Jamaica Plain, since the escape attempt.
The two deputies involved in the incident and Middlesex County Sheriff Peter J. Koutoujian delivered impact statements at today’s sentencing.
“The brave actions of these two deputies during a violent escape attempt in a crowded downtown Boston hospital likely prevented additional injuries, or even fatalities. Their selfless conduct in performance of their duties—and in protection of the public—deserves enormous praise and thanks, particularly given the toll it has taken on them and their families, as we heard in court today,” Hayden said.
All charged individuals are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, Mass. The office handles over 20,000 cases a year. More than 160 attorneys in the office practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Boston Juvenile Courts. The office employs some 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs to serve anyone who comes in contact with the criminal justice system. This office is committed to educating the public about the services we provide, our commitment to crime prevention, and our dedication to keeping the residents of Suffolk County safe.
James Borghesani, Chief of Communications