Commonwealth v. Viust

During the murder trial of Robert B. Vacher, John A. Viust, Jr., was called by the Commonwealth as a witness. Viust had the assistance of counsel. After hearing from Viust’s counsel, the judge explained the law to Viust, and warned him that he would be found in contempt if he did not testify. Viust refused to testify. The judge found him in summary contempt under Mass.R.Crim.P. 43, 378 Mass. 919 (1979) (rule 43). For the reasons that follow, we affirm the summary criminal contempt finding.

Background. Vacher’s trial began on November 7, 2011. On *309November 17, 2011, the Commonwealth called Viust…