State v. Fritschen

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Abbott, J.:

This is a direct appeal by the defendant, James F. Fritschen, from his convictions for one count of rape and two counts of first-degree murder. Fritschen’s appeal concerns whether the confessions he gave should have been suppressed. The facts are essentially undisputed.

Janice Hough and Lee Richardson lived in Hough’s house in Newton. On April 10, 1988, Hough and Richardson were found stabbed to death in the house. Richardson had been stabbed 23 times; Hough had been stabbed 10 times and raped. Through interviews with neighbors and friends,…