Legal Opinion
Kater v. Commonwealth
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Decided August 1, 1995PublishedCited by 52 opinions
1Opinion of the CourtWilkins, J.
On November 28, 1978, James M. Kater (defendant) was indicted for the murder and kidnapping of Mary Lou Arruda, a Raynham high school student. The body of the victim (who had been missing since September 8, 1978) had been found earlier in November in the Freetown State Forest tied to a tree. A jury found the defendant guilty of murder in the first degree and kidnapping. On appeal from those convictions and from the denial of a motion for a new trial, this court held that certain testimony of four prosecution witnesses that had been or might have been hypnotically aided was not reliable and…
2Cases cited16 opinions
- Commonwealth v. LatimoreMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1979
- Lockhart v. NelsonSupreme Court of the United States · 1988
- Richardson v. United StatesSupreme Court of the United States · 1984
- Commonwealth v. KelleyMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1976
- Commonwealth v. BeckettMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1977
11 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by52 opinions
- Commonwealth v. TorresMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1997
- Commonwealth v. KaterMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 2000
- Commonwealth v. O'LaughlinMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 2006
- Commonwealth v. PattonMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 2010
- Commonwealth v. MartinMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 2014
47 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.