Commonwealth v. McCourt

The defendant was tried before a jury in the Superior Court on indictments charging him1 with aggravated rape, attempted murder, assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon (a shod foot), and indecent assault and *487battery. The charges stemmed from a rape and beating that occurred in Chicopee in the early morning hours of February 1, 1997. The jury found the defendant guilty on all charges. The Appeals Court vacated the defendant’s conviction of aggravated rape, concluding that the statute punishing aggravated rape, G. L. c. 265, § 22 (a), requires that the aggravating factors that…