Boston Gunman’s Long Rap Sheet Raises Questions: ‘Why Wasn’t He in Jail?’

A terrifying shooting spree on a busy road outside Boston Monday has left two victims fighting for their lives and renewed scrutiny on a criminal justice system that critics say failed to keep a violent offender behind bars.

The suspect, Tyler Brown, allegedly opened fire with an assault-style rifle, with witnesses reporting he targeted people at random and “was spraying bullets in all directions,” according to the program. Police eventually took Brown into custody.

But what has sparked outrage is Brown’s criminal history. In 2020, he opened fire on police officers and was convicted of attempting to murder law enforcement. At that time, the district attorney requested a 10-to-12-year sentence. However, a judge cut that sentence in half, giving Brown just five to six years. The parole board then granted him even less time than that. It remains unclear why the judge showed leniency, despite Brown having a rap sheet stretching back decades.

“It is so outrageous how many bodies are going to be collected for the judges and judicial system to just focus on the real threat that these individuals pose,” said trial attorney Mercedes Colwin. “Someone on the parole board should have some sense, especially given the circumstances leading to incarceration, trying to assassinate law enforcement. That should be your first clue that this individual is unstable and poses a threat to the community at large.”

Criminal defense attorney Mark Eiglarsh, while noting he has defended clients in similar situations, agreed that Brown should have remained locked up.

“I was the one who defended this guy, and I’m on your side on this one,” Eiglarsh said. “Prison terms, long ones, are reserved for the most violent and most dangerous. And that’s what this guy is. He didn’t just shoot randomly—he shot 13 times, and more specifically at law enforcement officers. With his record dating back to the disco era, somebody should have had an idea that he could be violent.”

When asked whether judges can be held accountable, Eiglarsh noted that judges are in elected positions: “If the community is outraged, they can show up and vote against the judge.”

Colwin added that the failures extend beyond the bench. “You have a prosecutor’s job, but yet prosecutors, parole—the parole board is supposed to protect people in this community,” she said. “This individual, this time before, posed a threat to the community. It’s a resounding yes.”

The program also drew parallels to the case of Logan Federico, whose alleged killer had accumulated 25 felony charges without serving serious time. Her father told the show his daughter was “a victim of not only murder but a justice system failing to do its job.”

Colwin rejected the idea that leniency is always an overcorrection from past tough-on-crime policies. “Some people can’t be rehabilitated,” she said. “When you have someone like this who has already shown a propensity for violence, that’s not something that’s going to be rehabilitated. This is someone who needs to be separated from society and incarcerated.”