Commonwealth v. Than

There was a brawl outside Shooter’s Sports Bar in Dracut at about 1:30 a.m. on October 3, 1999. At the time, John Fraser, a Dracut police officer, was working a paid detail and was talking near the entrance to the bar with two fellow officers who had dropped by after finishing their regular shifts. In the parking lot, where the fighting had broken out, someone *411shouted, “He’s got a gun,” and gestured toward four men running from the melee. Officer Fraser and one of the officers who had just come off duty gave chase. The fleeing men ran to and entered a white Honda Civic automobile. The…