A Burlington police lieutenant called 911 at about 1 a.m. Sunday to report that his wife “just came at him.” By the time the responding officers, his own department’s, had finished, he was the one under arrest. Lt. Peter Abaskharoun, 46, was charged with assault and battery on a family or household member and intimidation of a witness, held for six hours, released on $2,500 bail set by a bail commissioner, and arraigned Monday morning in Woburn District Court, where he pleaded not guilty. The department placed him on paid administrative leave and opened an internal affairs investigation. He is presumed innocent.
This is the third Massachusetts police discipline story in five days, after a Sandwich officer’s OUI arrest and a State Police trooper’s firing, and it is the one that shows most clearly how the system handles an officer accused by his own department. This piece sets out what the police report says, what the two charges mean, why the second one is the more serious, and what happens to a lieutenant’s job and certification while the case runs.
What the report says
According to the Burlington police report filed in court and reported by Boston.com, Abaskharoun told officers the couple had a “heated discussion” in which his wife came at him with a closed fist. He admitted that he “threw his head” at her, causing her nose to bleed, but said it was to “get her away from me.” Officers noted a small lump above his right eye. They found his wife elsewhere in the home. The report’s account of her statement, and the basis for the witness intimidation count, were not detailed in the coverage available Monday. His lawyer declined to comment to the Globe and did not respond to Boston.com.
The first charge
Assault and battery on a family or household member, G.L. c. 265, § 13M, was created in 2014 to separate domestic assaults from ordinary assault and battery. A first offense carries up to two and a half years in a house of correction or a $5,000 fine. “Family or household member” includes spouses. The statute also requires, on any conviction or continuance without a finding, that the defendant complete a certified batterer’s intervention program unless the court finds good cause in writing not to order it.
The account in the report, a headbutt in response to a closed-fist approach, is a self-defense claim, and a headbutt that breaks or bloodies a nose is the kind of force a jury would be asked to measure against the threat. Self-defense requires that the defendant reasonably feared harm, used no more force than necessary, and, in the home with a spouse, had no reasonable means of retreat or was not the aggressor. Those are trial questions, and the report’s own account, in which he called 911 and had a lump over his eye, gives the defense something to work with.
The second charge, which is the serious one
Intimidation of a witness, G.L. c. 268, § 13B, is a felony punishable by up to ten years in state prison. It reaches anyone who willfully threatens, intimidates or harasses, or attempts to, a witness or potential witness in a criminal proceeding or investigation, with intent to impede or influence it. In a domestic case, the charge typically rests on something said to the complainant about calling the police, or after they were called: a threat, a demand not to cooperate, an attempt to take a phone. The coverage does not say what it rests on here. It is the charge that makes the case a potential Superior Court matter and, for a police officer, the charge that goes to the heart of the job. The report’s basis for it has not been reported, and it should not be assumed.
The charge also triggers the dangerousness statute. G.L. c. 276, § 58A lists a charge under § 13B among the offenses on which the Commonwealth may move for pretrial detention. The Commonwealth did not do so; he was released on bail by a bail commissioner before arraignment, and the coverage reports no detention motion Monday.
The six-hour hold and the bail commissioner
Abaskharoun was held for six hours before release. That is the statutory cooling-off period Massachusetts imposes on a person arrested for a domestic assault: the arrestee may not be released on bail within six hours of arrest unless a judge orders otherwise, so that the complainant has time to leave, seek a restraining order, or otherwise be safe before the defendant is out. After the six hours, a bail commissioner set bail at $2,500 and he was released.
Whether his wife has sought or been granted a G.L. c. 209A abuse prevention order was not reported. A 209A order, if issued, would bar him from the home and from contact and would require him to surrender any firearms, including his service weapon, for the life of the order. An officer without a firearm cannot work patrol. Many departments’ collective bargaining agreements address that circumstance; it is one reason administrative leave in these cases is paid.
What happens to his job
Paid administrative leave is the default. The department’s statement, from Chief Thomas Browne, said “appropriate administrative action will be determined based on the findings of the investigation” and that the department “holds its officers to the highest standards of conduct.” The internal affairs investigation runs in parallel with the criminal case and can reach a different result on a lower standard of proof. A lieutenant in a civil service town has hearing rights under G.L. c. 31 before discipline; a conviction, or a sustained internal finding of untruthfulness or domestic violence, is grounds for termination.
The POST Commission, which certifies every officer in the state, confirmed to Boston 25 that Abaskharoun remains certified. Under the 2020 police reform law, a felony conviction results in mandatory decertification; other convictions and sustained internal findings can lead to suspension or revocation after a commission hearing. Decertification ends a police career in Massachusetts regardless of what the department does. The witness intimidation charge, as a felony, is the one that carries that consequence on conviction.
What to watch
Whether a 209A order issues, which would be public in the court file. Whether the Commonwealth pursues the § 13B count or reduces it, which will indicate what the intimidation allegation was. The pretrial date in Woburn District Court. And whether the internal affairs investigation concludes before the criminal case, which in officer cases it often does not.
Common questions
What is Lt. Abaskharoun charged with?
Assault and battery on a family or household member (G.L. c. 265, § 13M) and intimidation of a witness (G.L. c. 268, § 13B). He pleaded not guilty and is presumed innocent.
Why is witness intimidation the more serious charge?
It is a felony carrying up to ten years in state prison, it is listed in the dangerousness statute, and a felony conviction results in mandatory decertification by the POST Commission.
Why was he held six hours?
Massachusetts requires a six-hour hold after a domestic assault arrest before release on bail, to give the complainant time to seek safety or a restraining order.
Is he still a police officer?
Yes. He is on paid administrative leave, remains certified by the POST Commission, and is the subject of an internal affairs investigation. A conviction or a sustained internal finding could change that.
Facts from the Burlington Police Department report as reported by Boston.com, and from department statements as reported by NBC10 Boston and Boston 25 News, September 14 and 15, 2026. G.L. c. 265, § 13M and c. 276, § 58A read at malegislature.gov. Peter Abaskharoun is presumed innocent. General information about Massachusetts law, not legal advice.