Commonwealth v. Willie

The defendant, Joseph S. Willie, was indicted on October 26, 1984, for rape and for indecent assault and battery on a retarded person. On March 26,1985, the defendant filed a motion for dismissal of the indictments for failure of the Commonwealth to preserve “all physical evidence in this case in suitable condition for testing to determine the presence of any substances therein material to the case.” Hearings were held on May 7, 1985, and June 3,1985. On June 13, 1985, the *428Superior Court judge reported the following questions to the Appeals Court, pursuant to Mass. R. Crim. P. 34, 378 Mass.…