Commonwealth v. Hodge (No. 1)

The defendant was indicted on a charge of murder in the first degree and convicted, after trial to a jury, of murder in the second degree. He was sentenced to a mandatory term of imprisonment for life. After he was sentenced, the defendant filed motions for a finding of not guilty and, alternatively, for a new trial, both of which were denied by the trial judge. The defendant’s separate motion for new trial was also denied. The defendant’s additional motion for a stay of execution of sentence pending appeal was granted by the judge, who freed the defendant upon $60,000 surety. The…