State v. LaPlume

The defendant, Henry LaPlume, was indicted by a grand jury on December 10, 1973. The indictment charged that he “* * * did unlawfully contrive, confederate and conspire * * * to commit a criminal and unlawful act, to wit, to murder Joyce May Brankio, in violation of §11-1-1 G.L. R.I., 1966, as amended.” The •case was tried before a justice of the Superior Court sitting with a jury which returned a verdict of guilty against the defendant. His motion for a new trial was denied and he is now before us on appeal.

In June 1972, Henry LaPlume and his wife, Joyce, were divorced. During their marriage…