| Date: | 03/13/2019 |
|---|---|
| Organization: | Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court |
Commonwealth v. Hernandez
Supreme Judicial Court, March 13, 2019
(Death of Party/Abatement Ab Initio/Appeal)
“[W]hen a defendant dies irrespective of cause, while a direct appeal as of right challenging his conviction is pending, the proper course is to dismiss the appeal as moot and note in the trial court record that the conviction removed the defendant’s presumption of innocence, but that the conviction was appealed and neither affirmed nor reversed because the defendant died.”
*Rule shall apply prospectively and to this case.