Commonwealth v. Ryan

1. The only question which requires any discussion is whether the defendant was harmed by an unsolicited instruction to the Superior Court jury on responsibility for participation in a joint enterprise when (as the Commonwealth all but concedes in its brief) the evidence was insufficient to warrant a finding of guilt on that theory. The case had not been tried on that theory, nor had the theory been suggested in either of the closing arguments. The victim named in the complaints had originally identified James Ryan (James) rather than the defendant as the person who had entered the store and…