Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
C

Commonwealth v. Shaffer

326 N.E.2d 880 (1975)

From our private database of 46,500+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Commonwealth v. Shaffer

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
326 N.E.2d 880 (1975)

SH

Facts

Roberta Shaffer (defendant) resided with her two children in a ranch house owned by the victim, to whom Shaffer was engaged. Shaffer and the victim had a tumultuous relationship. Shaffer had received several severe beatings at the hands of the victim, and on at least one occasion the victim had threatened to kill her and the children. On the morning of the homicide, an argument ensued between Shaffer and the victim, and Shaffer retreated downstairs to the basement, where the children were eating breakfast and watching television. From the top of the basement stairs, the victim threatened to kill Shaffer and the kids. Shaffer started to telephone the police but stopped when the victim said he would leave the house. Instead, the victim returned to the top of the basement stairs, at which time Shaffer grabbed a .22-caliber rifle from the rack on the wall and loaded it. Shaffer again started to telephone the police but fired one fatal shot after the victim started down the stairs. More than five minutes elapsed between the time Shaffer went to the basement and the shooting. Shaffer was convicted of manslaughter and appealed, arguing the trial judge erred by including in his self-defense instruction that Shaffer had a duty to retreat from her home.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Tauro, C.J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,500 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Criminal Law

Key Terms