(DOWNLOAD) "Commonwealth v. Terry L. Grey" by Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts # Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Commonwealth v. Terry L. Grey
- Author : Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
- Release Date : January 19, 1987
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 62 KB
Description
Where evidence at a murder trial, including expert psychiatric testimony, tended to show that the defendant, because of his mental condition, may not have formed a specific intent either to kill the victim or to inflict grievous bodily harm on him, and where a finding of this specific intent may have been the basis for the jury's Conclusion that the defendant acted with malice, the Judge's failure, after timely request, to instruct the jury that they should consider, on the issue of intent, the defendant's mental status at the time of the crime was error requiring reversal of the defendant's conviction. [471-474] Hennessey, C.J., Concurring in part and Dissenting in part, would have reversed on the ground that the Judge's instructions to the jury, by impermissibly shifting the burden of proof as to some issues, created a substantial risk of a miscarriage of Justice. [475-478] The defendant was indicted for murder in the first degree and convicted of murder in the second. He challenges the Judge's refusal to instruct the jury that the defendant's mental impairment, if any, could be considered on all issues involving his specific intent to do certain things. The Judge told the jury, over objection, that any mental impairment could be considered only on the issue whether the defendant deliberately premeditated the victim's death. The Judge's instruction was erroneous because it told the jury not to consider evidence of the defendant's mental condition in deciding whether the defendant intended to kill the victim or intended to inflict grievous bodily harm on him, both of which are bases for a finding of malice aforethought.