R.H. Mandeville v. Erin Gaffney

Summary

The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts answered a certified question concerning whether the thirty-day deadline established in Mains v. Commonwealth for filing a gatekeeper petition applies to denials of motions for a new trial that occurred before December 13, 2000. The court held that the Mains deadline does not apply to those pre-Mains denials, which therefore remain subject to no specific time limitation under the prior practice.

Holdings

1. The thirty-day time limitation established in Mains v. Commonwealth for filing a gatekeeper petition does not apply to denials of motions for a new trial that occurred before December 13, 2000.
2. Pre-Mains denials continue to be governed by the pre-Mains practice and are not subject to the specific thirty-day time limitation announced in Mains.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the thirty-day time limitation for filing a gatekeeper petition under Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 278, § 33E, announced prospectively in Mains v. Commonwealth, applies to denials of motions for a new trial that occurred before December 13, 2000.
2. Whether pre-Mains denials of motions for a new trial remain subject to the pre-Mains practice, under which no specific time limit applied to filing a gatekeeper petition.

Disposition

other