July 3, 2003

District attorney issues report on April shooting at MGH

Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley released a final report June 26 about the investigation into the fatal double shooting that took place at the MGH April 8. The report concluded that Colleen Mitchell, 51, a secretary/receptionist in the Cardiac Arrhythmia Center, entered the office of Brian McGovern, MD, at 10 am. She fatally shot him and then fatally shot herself. The report also said that the investigation did not determine a motive for the shooting. According to the report, the investigation found that Mitchell had legally purchased a .38 caliber five-shot Taurus revolver in December 2000 in Hampton, Va., although she did not have a license to carry the gun in Massachusetts. After a search of Mitchell's apartment, police recovered 40 rounds of .38 caliber ammunition, a gun-cleaning kit, personal papers, as well as a prescription bottle for Wellbutrin and another for Zoloft — two common antidepressant drugs.

The district attorney's report also refuted unsubstantiated rumors about motives for the incident — one was that McGovern had caught Mitchell stealing drugs from the hospital and had confronted her, and the other was that McGovern and Mitchell had a personal relationship. "I can tell you that the investigation by this office and Boston police collected a great deal of professional and personal information about Dr. McGovern and Colleen Mitchell, and there is absolutely nothing that suggests that there was a personal relationship between the two," said Conley in the report.

Conley added: "We do not conclusively know the motive for the shootings, and we never may. But I can tell you that based on everything we know, Dr. McGovern was a highly respected physician, a good husband and a caring father."

The McGovern family also released a statement about the conclusion of the investigation. "We wish to thank our families, friends and colleagues for all their kindness, love and support. We express our gratitude to the Boston police for conducting a thorough investigation, and to all those at the MGH who have been so supportive of our family. Not least, we enormously appreciate the countless, most moving messages of condolence and tribute from Brian's patients, friends and colleagues."