Justia Massachusetts Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Defendant appealed the denial of his second motion for a new trial where he was convicted of second degree murder for the stabbing of an individual. At issue was whether defendant was denied effective assistance of counsel at trial because his defense counsel asked the judge not to instruct the jury on voluntary manslaughter based on reasonable provocation, even though the evidence permitted such an instruction. The court affirmed the denial of a new trial and held that the defense attorney's strategic decision was not manifestly unreasonable and that there was no substantial risk of a miscarriage of justice.