Man Pleads Not Guilty to 43 Charges Related to Memorial Drive Shooting

The man charged with firing more than 70 rounds on Memorial Drive in May, injuring two people, pleaded not guilty to 43 charges in Middlesex Superior Court Thursday in his first court appearance in nearly two months.

Tyler E. Brown IV, 47, appeared at Thursday’s hearing in a wheelchair, speaking little beyond greeting the judge and affirming his not guilty plea. Brown now faces dozens of charges including armed assault to murder, unlawful possession of a firearm, and property damage.

The charges stem from a May 11 shooting in which prosecutors allege Brown opened fire near a Memorial Drive intersection and injured two people before exchanging gunfire with a Massachusetts State Police trooper and an armed bystander. Brown was shot in his “lower extremities” and subdued before being arrested by state police.

The motive behind the shooting remains unclear.

A grand jury indicted Brown on Aug. 25 on 43 charges, including six counts of armed assault to murder. The indictment also alleges that Brown is a “habitual criminal” and an “armed career criminal,” citing his previous convictions.

Brown had previously pleaded not guilty to eight charges in Cambridge District Court just days after the shooting. But most cases tried in Massachusetts district courts carry a maximum sentence of two and a half years in jail per charge — substantially lower than the 20-year maximum sentence for armed assault to murder.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian T. Ryan announced Wednesday that her office had escalated the case to Superior Court after the grand jury indictment and introduced a litany of new charges.

During Thursday’s hearing, Assistant Clerk Stephen Mattos read each of the charges aloud while Brown gave little reaction. After hearing all 43 counts, Brown entered a not guilty plea.

Superior Court Judge Michael A. Sullivan ordered Brown to remain in custody. His next hearing is scheduled for Oct. 8.

Brown’s unredacted indictments, which include the names of the shooting victims, will remain impounded by the court until the October hearing.

Just days before the shooting, Brown had been released from a psychiatric hospital and was on parole for a separate shooting in Boston. Brown served a five-year prison sentence for firing at two Boston Police officers in 2020, and was released last year.

The grand jury cited the 2020 shooting in its indictment, along with a 2016 conviction on five counts of assault by means of a dangerous weapon, as part of its finding of Brown being a repeat violent offender.

—Staff writer Shawn A. Boehmer can be reached at [email protected] and on Signal at shawnb.18. Follow him on X @ShawnBoehmer.

—Staff writer Claire A. Michal can be reached at [email protected] and on Signal at ClaireMichal.154.