Commonwealth v. Franklin

After a jury trial, the defendant was convicted of two counts of rape of a child2 in violation of G. L. c. 265, § 23. He now contends that the judge erred in denying his motion for a required finding of not guilty as to each count. He maintains there was insufficient evidence to allow a jury to conclude there was penetration, a required element of a rape conviction.

We review a decision on a required finding of not guilty to determine whether the evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the Commonwealth, was sufficient enough that " 'any rational trier of fact could have found the…