Commonwealth v. Boucher

After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of murder in the first degree on a theory of extreme atrocity or cruelty and other crimes. Defendant appealed, arguing that the judge’s instruction on diminished capacity improperly limited the jury’s consideration of the evidence of his intoxication and, consequently, did not allow the jury to consider evidence of his diminished capacity from his intoxication with reference to whether the shooting was committed with extreme atrocity or cruelty. In the alternative, Defendant argued that the Supreme Judicial Court should adopt a specific intent requirement for murder committed with extreme atrocity or cruelty. The Court affirmed, holding (1) the instruction correctly conveyed to the jury that the effect upon Defendant of his intoxication was relevant to the Commonwealth’s burden to prove that Defendant acted in a cruel or atrocious manner; and (2) the instruction as given complies with current state of the law and was not erroneous. View "Commonwealth v. Boucher" on Justia Law