Riley v. Commonwealth

The plaintiff, Michael Riley, was convicted in 1986 of manslaughter and other charges as a joint venturer, but the Supreme Judicial Court reversed his convictions due to violations of Bruton v. United States, 391 U.S. 123 (1968) (Bruton). See Commonwealth v. Cunningham, 405 Mass. 646, 660 (1989) (reversing convictions of Leo Cunningham and Riley because of Bruton errors). At a retrial, Riley was acquitted of all charges. Following passage of the Erroneous Convictions *210Law, G. L. c. 258D, Riley brought this action seeking compensation for his wrongful conviction and imprisonment. The question…