Commonwealth v. Welch

After a jury-waived trial in the District Court, the defendant, Valerie Welch, was convicted of criminal harassment pursuant to G. L. c. 265, § 43A, based on a series of homophobic statements she made over the course of more than one and one-half years to and about the complaining witnesses, Stephen Robichau and Frank Brienza.1 The Appeals Court affirmed the defendant’s convictions in an unpublished memorandum and order pursuant to its rule 1:28. Commonwealth v. Welch, 61 Mass. App. Ct. 1008 (2004). We granted the defendant’s application for further appellate review. She contends that (1)…