Murphy v. Commonwealth

The issues raised by this petition for writ of error, which has been reserved and reported by the single justice without decision, are the validity of the action of a judge of the Superior Court in finding the petitioner guilty of criminal contempt and committing him to jail for one year (following the term he was serving in the House of Correction) for failure to answer two questions when a witness before a grand jury, who were investigating a murder.

On June 27, 1967, the petitioner was before the grand jury as a witness, having been duly summoned. The two questions, asked by an assistant…