Commonwealth v. Vaughn
Annotate this CaseAfter a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of murder in the first degree. Defendant filed a direct appeal and also appealed the denial of his motion for a new trial. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the conviction and the order denying Defendant’s motion for a new trial and declined to exercise its power under Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 278, 33E, holding (1) the judge considering Defendant’s motion for a new trial did not abuse its discretion in denying the motion without an evidentiary hearing; (2) assuming, without deciding, that the Commonwealth failed to timely disclose exculpatory evidence, the nondisclosure did not result in a substantial likelihood of a miscarriage of justice; (3) the prosecutor did not commit prosecutorial misconduct; and (4) Defendant’s trial counsel did not provide ineffective assistance.
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