Watch the Massachusetts State Police Air Wing help arrest a man accused of murdering his father

He is accused of murdering his father, 73-year-old Anthony Paluzzi. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Plymouth District Court on Friday and was ordered held without bail.

The Massachusetts State Police have now released an air wing video of the chase.

“The Air Wing provides critical real-time intelligence to commanders in a variety of contexts, including: large public gatherings, disasters, technical rescues, missing persons searches, or tactical incidents,” the Massachusetts State Police told MassLive. “While law enforcement can certainly accomplish these missions without air support, this capability is very helpful.”

But police chases can be dangerous.

A 2023 study published by the Police Executive Research Forum, a national think tank on police standards, called on police not to initiate a pursuit unless a violent crime has been committed and the suspect poses an imminent threat.

The report followed a sharp increase in the number of fatalities in car chases during the Covid-19 pandemic and criticism of several police departments for conducting increased car chases, including in Houston and New York City.

“A lot of this has to do with the new thinking in policing today, which is about proportionality,” said Chuck Wexler, executive director of PERF. “It's about the sanctity of life and weighing the risk to everyone. Police officers die in chases. Suspects die in chases, and even citizens can be injured or die.”

The Massachusetts State Police said the decision had to balance the need to arrest the suspect against the risk posed by the pursuit.

“In this murder case, it was important to arrest the man and we are grateful that our public safety partners were able to do so without incident,” state police said in a statement.

More than three years before Matthew Paluzzi stabbed his father to death, according to prosecutors, he was charged with pointing a gun at a woman at an ATM and asking her if she wanted to die that same day, court records show.

After that arrest, Matthew Paluzzi's mother, Wendy, told police that his mental health worsened, and he eventually had to be admitted to High Point Treatment Center and McLean Hospital, according to a police report filed in connection with the murder charge against Matthew Paluzzi.

And in the month before he was charged with murdering his father, Matthew Paluzzi's mental health had deteriorated, his mother said. Police said Matthew Paluzzi told them Thursday he was “crazy.”

On Thursday, Wendy Paluzzi told police she heard her son running around the house around 5:45 a.m. When she heard that, she got up to check on her husband, but he was unresponsive. She told officers she did not know where her son was and noticed her keys and car were missing.

During an interview with police, Wendy Paluzzi told officers that Matthew Paluzzi was on probation at the time and had no close friends that she knew of. Matthew Paluzzi's behavior had changed in the last month, she said. He had started smoking cannabis and his mental health seemed to be deteriorating.

Matthew Paluzzi was ordered held without bail Friday. His attorney, Makis Antzoulatos, filed a request for funds for a forensic psychologist, which Judge Julie Bernard granted.

Matthew Paluzzi will appear in court again on October 2 for both cases.

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