On October 16, 2006, Manchester police officer Michael Briggs was responding to a domestic violence call when he was shot by Michael Addison. Briggs died the following day and Addison and was later convicted of capital murder. Addison is the only person awaiting the death penalty in New Hampshire. NEC criminal justice professor Frank Jones was a Hillsboro County Sheriff’s Deputy at the time of the murder.
“Well, number one, of course, it was incredibly tragic. A young man who had a stellar career and progress,” Jones said.
In the immediate aftermath, Addison evaded police for several hours, leaving the law enforcement community on edge.
“Shock, sadness, wondering you know if anyone else would get hurt before the shooter was taken into custody. It’s hard to explain. Law enforcement you have two families; you have your blood family and your law enforcement family. It was like the loss of a family member,” Jones said.
“It’s not, it’s not expected, you know we don’t live in a state where police officer shootings happen every day. So it was just tragic. It was, and it remained that way for quite some time.”
Lawmakers voted to overturn the state’s death penalty law in 2019, but the change is not retroactive to Addison’s case. Addison has filed several appeals, but judge’s have upheld the death sentence.
Jones said he doesn’t think about the case nearly as much as he thinks about his friend, Michael Briggs.
“Michael Briggs was a great guy, a really great guy. And he didn’t need to die. And every year when I go down to the National law enforcement memorial in D.C. with our students, it’s a mandatory part of the trip, I make them go and pay their respects. Whether you like the [police] or not these are men and women who gave their life for the safety of mankind,” Jones said.
Jones thinks that Addison will eventually face execution but doesn’t feel it will be any time in the near future.
“Badge number 83. We shall never forget.”
