Boston Police Officer Cleared In Fatal Chick-Fil-A Shooting

BOSTON, MA — Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden has concluded that a Boston police officer used justifiable force in the fatal shooting of a man at a Back Bay restaurant last year.

Officer Jose Valenzuela will not face criminal charges in connection with the death of Lemark Jaramillo, 32, at the Chick-fil-A restaurant at 569 Boylston St. on March 1, 2025. According to the report, Valenzuela was off duty and waiting to pick up food when Jaramillo entered the restaurant with a knife while pursuing a teenager. Investigators determined that Jaramillo ignored repeated commands to drop the weapon and was about to stab the teenager in the back when the officer fired.

“Officer Valenzuela fired his off-duty handgun in a lawful use of force that was necessary to prevent Mr. Jaramillo from killing or seriously wounding the younger male or anyone else,” Hayden said in a statement. “Therefore, I have determined that criminal charges against the officer are not warranted.”

According to the six-page report, the confrontation began at the nearby Chipotle restaurant at 553 Boylston St. shortly after 5:19 p.m. Jaramillo requested a code to enter the upstairs restroom but made several trips back to the counter after being unable to get inside. During one of those trips, he and a teenager bumped shoulders near the stairs and briefly looked at each other before continuing on. The teenager and his two companions left the restaurant before returning a short time later. The two male teenagers went upstairs, where surveillance footage showed one of them repeatedly banging on the restroom door.

Jaramillo emerged approximately 20 seconds after the second round of knocks and began fighting with the teenager. The two briefly moved outside the camera’s view, preventing investigators from determining who landed the first blow. However, the footage showed the teenager punching Jaramillo at least twice in the face, breaking his sunglasses and causing a cut near his eyebrow. The fight moved into the dining area and caused nearby customers to leave before Jaramillo pulled out and opened a folding knife. The teenager briefly held a chair between them before running downstairs and outside, with Jaramillo following him.

The teenager and his two companions entered Chick-fil-A several doors down, where Valenzuela was standing near the entrance while his wife waited in their car outside. The officer saw the group enter before noticing Jaramillo following them with blood on his forehead and a knife in his right hand. Valenzuela drew his personal handgun and followed Jaramillo into the crowded waiting area as customers and employees attempted to flee. Although the surveillance footage did not have audio, multiple witnesses confirmed that the officer identified himself as police and repeatedly ordered Jaramillo to drop the knife, according to the report.

The teenager ran toward the counter before turning back toward the entrance, but his path outside was blocked by customers, including children, gathered against a wall. Jaramillo caught up from behind and raised the knife over the teenager’s back as Valenzuela stood a few feet away and continued ordering him to drop it. The officer then fired three times, striking Jaramillo twice in the chest and once in the left shoulder. Jaramillo fell forward and released the knife, sliding it across the floor toward Valenzuela.

The officer called 911 and attempted to provide medical aid with help from a civilian before on-duty police and Boston EMS arrived. Jaramillo was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy confirmed that he died from the gunshot wounds. Two bullets were recovered from his body, while a third passed through him and was found in the restaurant’s kitchen. It did not strike anyone else.

The investigation included surveillance footage from both restaurants, recorded interviews, police reports, body camera footage, photographs, ballistics evidence, and the autopsy report. Boston police investigators interviewed Valenzuela and at least 55 civilians, mainly customers and employees of Chick-fil-A. Assistant District Attorney Ian Polumbaum, the office’s Chief of Public Accountability, reviewed the evidence in consultation with other senior prosecutors.

The report also revealed that Valenzuela received a spoken reprimand from the police department because he had not completed a separate safety course required for carrying an off-duty firearm. Hayden said the violation did not affect the determination that the officer acted reasonably and lawfully, including how he handled the weapon during the shooting.

Investigators found that the two male teenagers gave accounts that contradicted each other and the Chipotle surveillance footage while minimizing their own involvement in the confrontation. However, Hayden said Valenzuela was unaware of the earlier fight and acted based on the attempted stabbing he witnessed inside Chick-fil-A.

“He knew only what he saw: a fast-evolving incident in which Mr. Jaramillo, armed with a knife, pursued a younger male into a crowded restaurant and tried to stab him a few feet from the officer despite commands to stop,” Hayden wrote in the report. “Therefore, my office has closed this tragic matter without criminal charges.”

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