Summary
This Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court opinion affirms the denial of a petitioner's request for relief under G.L. c. 211, § 3, following the lower court's refusal to grant a stay of his sentence execution pending a motion for a new trial. The court evaluated whether the petitioner demonstrated a likelihood of success on appeal regarding claims of undisclosed plea deals, constitutionally infirm jury instructions, and improper seating in a prisoner's dock. Finding no abuse of discretion by the trial judge or the single justice, the court concluded that none of the asserted issues presented a reasonable possibility of success or would likely result in a miscarriage of justice.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the single justice erred in denying White's petition for relief under G.L. c. 211, §3.
- Whether White has a likelihood of success on appeal based on alleged nondisclosure, the reasonable‑doubt instruction, and the prisoner's dock issue.
- Whether changes in the law after White's 1980 escape affect his motion for a stay.
Holdings
- The single justice did not err or abuse discretion in denying relief; the judgment is affirmed.
Key quotations
“"[T]he factors that shall be evaluated in deciding whether to allow a defendant's motion for a stay of the execution of his sentence pending the disposition of a new trial motion are the same as those relating to a stay of execution of sentence pending appeal."” (at 1027)
Factual background
Raymond J. White was convicted in 1972 of two counts of first‑degree murder and armed robbery alongside James Hall. White escaped custody in 1980, was recaptured in 1988, and subsequently sought relief from the denial of a motion for a stay of execution and a new‑trial motion. The issues raised concerned alleged nondisclosure of a deal with a codefendant, the constitutionality of the reasonable‑doubt instruction, and seating in a prisoner's dock.
Procedural history
White and co‑defendant James Hall were convicted of two counts of first‑degree murder and armed robbery in 1972. Hall's convictions were affirmed on direct appeal; White's direct appeal was never perfected. In 2014 White filed a petition under G.L. c. 211, §3 to reinstate his direct appeal, which the court denied, directing him to seek a new‑trial motion under Mass. R. Crim. P. 30(b). White filed a motion for a new trial in July 2023 and a motion for a stay of execution in January 2024; the trial court denied the stay in November 2024 and later denied the new‑trial motion in March 2025. White appealed the single justice’s denial of the stay, and the Supreme Judicial Court reviewed that denial.