Police said Sean Brewer claimed the firearm fired after he found it in clothing before church.
WINTHROP, Mass. — The object at the center of Jacklyn Berry’s death is a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson handgun that her husband told police he found in a jacket pocket Sunday morning.
That gun, one spent cartridge and a reported magazine on the bedroom floor are now key pieces of evidence in the manslaughter case against Sean Brewer. Brewer, 58, pleaded not guilty after prosecutors said he shot Berry, 47, inside her Beacon Street apartment. The defense says the shooting was accidental. Prosecutors say the evidence is serious enough to support manslaughter and unlawful possession charges. The case now turns on what investigators can prove about the firearm, the moments before it discharged and the people in the room.
Police were first sent to 26 Beacon St. shortly after 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Dispatchers had received multiple 911 calls about a disturbance. Initial reports said a man and woman were arguing and that a firearm may have been involved. When officers reached the apartment, they found Berry in a bed with a gunshot wound. Emergency workers treated her inside the building and took her to a Boston hospital. She died from her injuries soon after. Brewer was at the scene when officers arrived, and police detained him during the early investigation.
Brewer’s account, as read by prosecutors in court, began with housework and church plans. Assistant District Attorney Sarah McEvoy said Brewer told police he had been sweeping the bedroom before church when he found belongings that he said were not his. The items included a jacket. Inside the pocket, Brewer said, was a gun he did not recognize. He told officers he took the firearm out and asked Berry about it. McEvoy said Brewer claimed he did not touch the trigger and that the firearm “spontaneously went off,” striking Berry.
Investigators seized the handgun and found one spent cartridge, prosecutors said. Local reports also cited a police report that described a firearm magazine on the bedroom floor. Those details create a narrow evidence trail that could carry much of the case. The gun can be tested for function, defects and trigger pull. The cartridge can be matched to the weapon. The magazine, jacket and firearm can be checked for fingerprints or DNA. Officials have not publicly released the results of any such testing. They have also not said whether the gun was loaded when Brewer says he first found it, how many rounds were in it or whether any safety mechanism was engaged.
The charge filed by prosecutors does not require them to prove that Brewer planned to kill Berry. Manslaughter cases can turn on reckless conduct, intent, the handling of a dangerous weapon and the surrounding facts. Prosecutors also charged Brewer with possessing a firearm without a firearms identification card and possessing ammunition without a firearms identification card. Those weapons charges speak to whether Brewer could legally possess the gun or ammunition, regardless of who owned them. Authorities have not said whether anyone else has claimed the firearm or whether it had been reported stolen.
Brewer’s defense attorney, Lorenzo Perez, said the case should be viewed through the lens of accident. Perez said police reports and Berry’s alleged words before she died support that claim. He said the clothing and gun were brought to the apartment by another person, though that person has not been publicly identified. Perez also said Brewer and Berry were very much in love. The defense account places major weight on the reported statement Berry made after being shot. Prosecutors have not publicly released a full recording or transcript of the 911 call, body camera footage or medical response notes that could show exactly what Berry said and when she said it.
The courtroom scene showed the emotional force of the case before any evidence hearing began. Brewer sobbed during his arraignment in East Boston Municipal Court as prosecutors described Berry’s wound and his statement to police. A not guilty plea was entered. Berry’s relatives and friends were present and became emotional as well. Outside the legal arguments, her family described her as “sweet, loyal, loving and kind.” They said she was a nurturer and a proud sister, daughter, aunt, niece, friend and cousin. “The world is a little less bright today because she’s gone,” the family said.
The apartment’s ownership record adds another factual layer. Blue Sky Realty said Berry had lived in the Beacon Street unit since November 2025 and leased it by herself. The company said Brewer was not an approved tenant and was not on the lease. It said it had not received an application from him or any request to add him to the apartment. That statement does not decide the criminal case, but it may help investigators establish who had legal control of the home, who had access to the bedroom and what Berry’s living arrangement was before the shooting.
The judge set Brewer’s bail at $100,000 in the shooting case. Prosecutors also asked the court to revoke bail in a pending case, and the judge agreed. In that earlier matter, Brewer faces charges that include assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, assault and battery on a police officer and resisting arrest. Prosecutors said he has a lengthy record with convictions involving violence and drugs. Brewer’s lawyer did not make a full bail argument at the arraignment. Brewer remained held after the hearing because of both the new bail order and the revocation in the older case.
Investigators from Winthrop police and State Police detectives assigned to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office continue to examine the fatal shooting. The next scheduled step is a July 15 probable cause hearing, where the court is expected to review whether prosecutors have enough evidence for the manslaughter case to continue.
Author note: Last updated June 22, 2026.