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Commonwealth v. LeClair

Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts

445 Mass. 734 (2006)

Facts

Paul LeClair (defendant) and his wife were engaged in a heated domestic dispute. The wife's brother forcefully intervened, briefly pinning LeClair to the ground. When the brother-in-law released LeClair, LeClair grabbed a knife and fatally stabbed his wife. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts (plaintiff) prosecuted LeClair for murder. At trial, LeClair argued that the brother-in-law's forceful intervention so provoked LeClair that he should be convicted only of voluntary manslaughter, not murder. The judge refused LeClair's request for a jury instruction on voluntary manslaughter. The jury convicted LeClair of murder, and he appealed to the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts.

Rule of Law

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Issue

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Holding and Reasoning (Greaney, J.)

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A "yes" or "no" answer to the question framed in the issue section;
A summary of the majority or plurality opinion, using the CREAC method; and
The procedural disposition (e.g., reversed and remanded, affirmed, etc.).

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