Commonwealth v. Keohane

A jury convicted the defendant of murder in the first degree on a theory of extreme atrocity or cruelty and also found him guilty of armed assault in a dwelling. The defendant appeals from his convictions and from the denial of his motion for a new trial. Represented by new counsel on appeal, the defendant claims error because the jury were not permitted to consider a verdict of voluntary manslaughter; the trial judge excluded testimony concerning the victim’s alleged racial bias; and the judge failed to conduct individual voir dire on the issue of graphic photographs, subsequently admitting…