Title: Commonwealth v. Duguay

State: massachusetts

Issuer: Massachusetts Supreme Court

Document:

NOTICE:  All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal 
revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound 
volumes of the Official Reports.  If you find a typographical 
error or other formal error, please notify the Reporter of 
Decisions, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, 1 
Pemberton Square, Suite 2500, Boston, MA, 02108-1750; (617) 557-
1030; SJCReporter@sjc.state.ma.us 
 
SJC-13312 
 
COMMONWEALTH  vs.  TIMOTHY DUGUAY. 
 
 
 
Plymouth.     April 3, 2023. - July 28, 2023. 
 
Present:  Budd, C.J., Lowy, Cypher, Kafker, Wendlandt, 
& Georges, JJ. 
 
 
Homicide.  Deoxyribonucleic Acid.  Evidence, Scientific test.  
Practice, Criminal, Postconviction relief, New trial, 
Discovery. 
 
 
 
Indictment found and returned in the Superior Court 
Department on November 7, 1995. 
 
Following review by this court, 430 Mass. 397 (1999), a 
motion for a new trial, filed on September 22, 2020, was heard 
by William F. Sullivan, J., and a motion for postconviction 
discovery, filed on February 25, 2021, was considered by him. 
 
A request for leave to appeal was allowed by Lowy, J., in 
the Supreme Judicial Court for the county of Suffolk. 
 
 
Michael A. Nam-Krane for the defendant. 
Arne Hantson, Assistant District Attorney, for the 
Commonwealth. 
Lisa M. Kavanaugh, Committee for Public Counsel Services, 
Michael A. Albert, Emma L. Frank, Anne Weeks, Stephanie Roberts 
Hartung, & Claudia Leis Bolgen, for New England Innocence 
Project & others, amici curiae, submitted a brief. 
 
 
2 
 
 
CYPHER, J.  Following a jury trial, the defendant, Timothy 
Duguay, was convicted of murder in the first degree on the 
theory of extreme atrocity or cruelty.  This court affirmed the 
defendant's conviction on direct appeal.  Commonwealth v. 
Duguay, 430 Mass. 397 (1999).  Years later, the defendant filed 
a motion for postconviction forensic and deoxyribonucleic acid 
(DNA) analysis pursuant to G. L. c. 278A, § 2, which was 
allowed.  Following the postconviction forensic analysis, the 
defendant filed a motion for a new trial.  The motion was denied 
after a nonevidentiary hearing.1 
The defendant filed with this court a timely notice of 
appeal and a petition, pursuant to G. L. c. 278, § 33E, for 
leave to appeal from the denial of the motion for a new trial.  
A single justice granted the defendant's petition.2  On appeal, 
the defendant argues that the new forensic analysis demonstrates 
that the Commonwealth's blood and DNA trial evidence was 
unreliable and that a confluence of factors demonstrates that 
justice was not done in this case, thus requiring a new trial.  
 
1 The defendant also filed a motion for postconviction 
discovery.  The motion judge did not rule on the motion; thus, 
it implicitly was denied.  See Commonwealth v. Dubois, 451 Mass. 
20, 29 (2008), citing Commonwealth v. Rosado, 450 Mass. 657, 659 
(2008) ("The failure of a judge to rule on a motion is treated 
as an implicit denial"). 
 
2 The single justice also allowed the defendant leave to 
appeal from the denial of his motion for postconviction 
discovery. 
3 
 
For the reasons set forth infra, we affirm the denial of the 
defendant's motion for a new trial.3 
 
Background.  The facts surrounding the murder are set forth 
in detail in Duguay, 430 Mass. at 398-400.  "We summarize those 
facts here and supplement them with other relevant facts from 
the trial record and the facts found by the motion judge to be 
significant with respect to the defendant's motion for a new 
trial, all of which are supported by the record."  Commonwealth 
v. Sullivan, 469 Mass. 340, 341 (2014). 
 
The victim, Robert Madera, lived with his mother in 
Wareham.  The defendant lived a short walking distance away.  
When the defendant was seventeen years old and the victim was 
twelve years old, they became involved in an on-and-off intimate 
relationship, which would continue for the next five years until 
the victim's death at the age of seventeen.4  Duguay, 430 Mass. 
at 398. 
 
The defendant and victim's relationship included many 
disagreements and growing animosity prior to the victim's death.  
When the victim was twelve, the defendant "constantly came 
 
3 We acknowledge the amicus brief submitted by the New 
England Innocence Project, Committee for Public Counsel 
Services, and Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense 
Lawyers. 
 
4 The defendant was twenty-three years old at the time of 
the murder.  Commonwealth v. Duguay, 430 Mass. 397, 398 (1999). 
4 
 
around looking for [him], asking where he was and what he was 
doing."  The victim would sneak out of his own home to go to the 
defendant's home, and during this time, the defendant told the 
victim's stepfather that he and the victim were in a sexual 
relationship and that he loved the victim. 
When the victim was about fourteen, the victim's mother 
asked the defendant to stay away from her son.  The defendant 
became angry, telephoned the victim's mother's house, called her 
uncomplimentary names, and told her to mind her own business.  
These harassing telephone calls, in which the defendant used 
vulgar language toward the victim's mother, continued for some 
time.  The victim's mother would change her telephone number, 
but the defendant always found a way to obtain her new telephone 
number. 
The defendant's harassment of those close to the victim 
went beyond the victim's immediate family.  When the victim was 
in tenth grade, the defendant told the victim's then girlfriend 
that he loved the victim.  The defendant repeatedly would ask 
the victim's girlfriend to persuade the victim to perform oral 
sex on him.  After the victim revealed to his girlfriend that 
the defendant had performed oral sex on him, the defendant began 
to telephone her house and harass her, bragging that he had had 
sex with the victim. 
5 
 
 
During the summer of 1995, the defendant talked often to 
his girlfriend about the victim.  He told her that the victim 
played games, lied, and "fucked with his mind."  The defendant 
told his girlfriend that he was going to blackmail the victim by 
threatening to tell those close to the victim about their 
intimate relationship.  The defendant also said that if the 
victim threatened to tell anyone that the defendant had molested 
him, the defendant would just say "that [the victim] had enjoyed 
it."  The defendant also telephoned his girlfriend's cousin 
during this time and told her that he was arguing with the 
victim and that he would like to kill him.  That summer, when 
the victim and his girlfriend drove by the defendant, the 
defendant called her a "bitch" and yelled at her that he was 
"going to fuck her up." 
 
In the weeks before the victim's death, he acted fearful 
and nervous, slept in his clothes, and kept the lights on at 
night.  The victim believed that police were watching him before 
his upcoming Juvenile Court date.5  During this time, the 
victim's uncle, Robert Gomes, had moved from Rhode Island to the 
victim's family home.  The victim believed that his uncle was 
staying with them because "people" were after his uncle, who had 
been forced to leave Rhode Island.  The victim told his then 
 
5 The victim told a prior girlfriend that he had "committed 
a breaking and entering a long time ago." 
6 
 
girlfriend that someone was going to kill him and that he was 
afraid of "getting caught in the middle" of the uncle's alleged 
dispute.  The victim's uncle did not leave Rhode Island, 
however, because someone was after him, and he had not told the 
victim so.  Instead, the victim's uncle had left Rhode Island to 
seek help for his substance disorder.  Nonetheless, the victim 
continued to be fidgety and nervous. 
 
The growing animosity between the defendant and the victim 
continued in the days leading up to the victim's death.  See 
Duguay, 430 Mass. at 398.  "Four days before the victim's death, 
the defendant received a judgment against the victim."  Id.  The 
judgment stemmed from money the victim had borrowed from the 
defendant.  See id.  The victim offered to repay the defendant.  
However, the defendant stated that he would rather have the 
victim spend the night with him than be repaid the money owed 
under the judgment.  Id.  "That evening, . . . a Thursday, the 
defendant and the victim spent the night together and were 
intimate."  Id.  The defendant and victim had planned to spend 
Sunday night together, the night before the murder, but the 
victim had gone out with a female friend and spent the night at 
his own home.  See id. 
On the day of the murder, the victim was agitated and 
wanted to visit his mother at her place of work, telling her 
that he needed to talk to her.  The victim had spent some time 
7 
 
that day with his girlfriend and told her "that if he told her 
what was going on, she would not love him and would leave him."  
The victim indicated that something happened when he was twelve 
years old and that he had been warned never to tell anyone. 
That same day, after the victim did not spend Sunday night 
at the defendant's home, the defendant telephoned the victim and 
demanded to know where the victim had been the night before.  
Duguay, 430 Mass. at 398.  The victim's mother's cousin, who 
lived next door, was listening to a police scanner on the 
evening of the murder and heard the defendant loudly and angrily 
accuse the victim of standing him up.  The cousin also heard the 
defendant tell the victim that he was coming over to tell the 
victim's mother "everything" and was going to "fuck up" the 
victim.  The defendant drove to the victim's house twice on the 
day of the murder, but each time, the victim refused to talk to 
the defendant and told him to leave.6  Id. at 398-399. 
Approximately one to two hours before the murder, the 
defendant told a friend that the victim was supposed to spend 
the night with him but did not.  Duguay, 430 Mass. at 399.  He 
told her that he was tired of being hurt by the victim and said 
 
6 After the defendant had driven to the victim's home to 
speak with the victim, and the victim told the defendant to 
"leave [him] alone," the victim told his uncle, Joseph 
Vasconcelos, "Timmy Duguay is a pain in the ass.  He just keeps 
bugging me, he won't leave me alone." 
8 
 
that he was going to kill the victim.  Approximately twenty 
minutes before the murder, the defendant telephoned the victim's 
home and left a voice message for the victim's mother.  Id.  In 
the message, the defendant told the victim's mother that he had 
been having a sexual relationship with the victim, that the 
victim was "going to answer for the head games he's played with 
[the defendant]," and that the victim was not going to threaten 
the defendant "because [the defendant was] just going to turn 
[him]self in and [he has] already started that."  Id.  The 
defendant also warned the victim's mother that she ought to "get 
ready for a fun ride at the courthouse."  Id. 
Around 7:15 P.M. on the night of the murder, a friend of 
the victim telephoned him, but the victim said he could not talk 
because "someone was coming," and the victim hung up.  When the 
friend telephoned again, the victim sounded scared, said that 
someone was coming, and then said that someone was there with 
him at the house.  The victim told her "to never call back and 
hung up."  When the friend drove to the victim's home at 
approximately 7:40 P.M., she knocked on the front door and 
honked her car horn but received no response. 
At approximately 7:50 P.M., the victim's aunt, who lived in 
a neighboring house, was walking her dog and saw the victim walk 
out the front door of the home and fall to the ground face down.  
The victim's face was smeared with blood, and the aunt rushed 
9 
 
into the home to call for an ambulance.  As the ambulance was 
driven onto the victim's street, the driver saw someone in dark 
clothes walking in the opposite direction from the victim's 
home.  Duguay, 430 Mass. at 399.  Although there were loud 
screams coming from the direction of the victim's home, the 
dark-clothed person did not turn around or react in any way and 
continued to walk away.  See id. 
The victim could not speak, was struggling to breathe, and 
had multiple stab wounds to his neck, face, and chest.  Duguay, 
430 Mass. at 399.  He died in the ambulance en route to a 
hospital.  Police were dispatched to the crime scene and learned 
that the defendant's vehicle was seen being driven from the 
victim's house earlier that evening.7  Id.  This prompted police 
to go to the defendant's house.8  Id. 
When police arrived at the defendant's house, he told them, 
"I knew you were coming."  The defendant was then read his 
Miranda warnings and agreed to go to a police station to talk.  
While in the back seat of the police cruiser, the defendant 
asked what police wanted to know.  When an officer responded 
that the defendant should just tell them what happened, the 
 
7 An officer collected as evidence a steak knife on the 
staircase by the sliding door.  The knife did not appear to have 
blood on it. 
 
8 Police ultimately looked at other suspects after speaking 
to the victim's uncle, Robert Gomes. 
10 
 
defendant replied, "If I tell you what happened you'll put me 
away for the rest of my life." 
On arriving at the police station, the defendant was read 
the Miranda warnings again and was interviewed.  Duguay, 430 
Mass. at 400.  The defendant was sweating and appeared nervous.  
He initially denied his sexual relationship with the victim, but 
after police told the defendant that they knew of the voice 
message that he left for the victim's mother, he admitted to his 
relationship with the victim.  Id.  The defendant told police 
that he was tired of the victim playing "head games," as the 
victim had threatened to send the defendant to jail for life for 
raping him when the victim was twelve. 
The defendant also admitted that he had lent money to the 
victim and obtained a judgment against him.  He also told police 
that the victim recently had "started hanging around with a bad 
crowd," and that he had telephoned police to report the victim 
and his friends for illegal activities.  The defendant admitted 
that he had argued with the victim in the days before the murder 
and thought that the victim's family might have telephoned 
police because of their argument. 
During the interview, the defendant was wearing the same 
dark clothes as he had been wearing since the middle of the day.  
Duguay, 430 Mass. at 400.  An officer observed the defendant's 
hands and arms and did not observe any blood or recent wounds.  
11 
 
With the defendant's consent, the defendant was fingerprinted 
and had his clothes tested for blood by a State police chemist, 
Lori Bunnell. 
Bunnell performed an ortho-tolidine screening test for the 
presence of blood on the defendant's hands.  Bunnell testified 
that any type of blood, including human, animal, and insect 
blood, and blood from meat, would cause a positive reaction.  
Human blood causes an immediate bright blue reaction, while 
slower reactions can be caused by vegetation, rust, and 
detergents.9  Other bodily fluids like saliva and feces also 
would cause a reaction.  A positive ortho-tolidine test result 
is indicative of the presence of blood, but it does not prove 
that the substance is blood.  Thus, the ortho-tolidine testing 
is presumptive testing only for blood. 
There was no visible blood on his hands, fingernails, or 
clothes.  Bunnell's testing revealed that the defendant's left 
hand was positive between his fingers and on the palm, but not 
on the back of his hand.  The defendant's right hand tested 
positive between his fingers, on his palm, and on the back of 
his hand.  Further testing was done on the defendant's sneakers 
and socks and the soles of his feet.  The bottoms of the 
 
9 Bunnell did not photograph or videotape the chemical 
reaction. 
12 
 
defendant's sneakers and the soles of his feet tested positive, 
but his socks tested negative. 
Bunnell then conducted further ortho-tolidine testing in 
the victim's house.  The bottom of the bathroom sink and its 
handles tested positive.  Swabs of the visible blood were taken 
and were determined to be human blood.  Hair also was collected 
from a knife on the kitchen floor; however, the hair sample was 
too small for identification. 
Bunnell then conducted the same testing at the defendant's 
house.  The light switch near the entrance door tested positive.  
Red drops on the wall behind the sink tested negative.  However, 
the base of the sink, the tub faucet, the shower head, and the 
bathtub tested positive.10  The same testing was done to the 
defendant's car.  The outside and inside of the driver's side 
door, the trunk, the passenger's seat, and the car keys tested 
negative, but the steering wheel, the gear shift, the brake and 
gasoline pedals, and the driver's seat tested positive. 
After conducting testing at the defendant's and victim's 
respective homes, Bunnell returned to the police station to 
perform more testing on the defendant.  Bunnell tested the 
defendant's sneakers, turtleneck shirt, jeans, and jacket.  
 
10 Bunnell conceded at trial that blood can fall into a sink 
when someone is shaving.  The defendant's mother also recently 
had had surgery and had a leg and some toes amputated, 
unbeknownst to Bunnell. 
13 
 
Parts of the turtleneck shirt tested positive, as well as each 
leg of the defendant's jeans.  The interior of the pockets of 
the defendant's jeans tested negative.  The front and back of 
the defendant's jacket tested positive, but not the collar or 
the interior pockets.  The jacket had an approximately three-
eighths inch cut on the right sleeve. 
Rectal swabs taken from the victim also were examined by 
Bunnell.  The swabs contained a relatively small amount of sperm 
cells.  The semen was type B blood, even though the defendant 
has type A blood.  Bunnell also examined hair evidence found on 
the defendant's sneakers.  The human hair was not similar to 
samples of hair of either the defendant or victim. 
A State police crime laboratory (crime lab) serologist also 
was called on to examine blood and saliva samples from the 
defendant, blood samples from the crime scene, and blood samples 
and rectal swabs from the victim.  The serologist determined 
that the blood from the crime scene was consistent with the 
victim's blood, and that none of the blood at the crime scene 
was consistent with that of the defendant.  The serologist also 
examined the rectal swabs taken from the victim and detected 
type B blood from the sample but could not opine on whether the 
type B blood came from sperm cells or mucus.11 
 
11 The defendant has type A blood, and is a secretor, such 
that he secretes his blood type into any bodily fluids.  The 
14 
 
After analysis of photographs and video recordings of the 
crime scene by a State police trooper trained in bloodstain 
analysis, the trooper testified that it was his opinion that the 
victim was attacked from behind on the couch, stumbled across 
the room, grabbed onto various items of furniture for support, 
stumbled toward and out of the front door, and fell onto the 
front lawn.  In closing, the Commonwealth emphasized the soured 
relationship between the defendant and the victim, and the 
incriminating statements made by the defendant to his girlfriend 
shortly before the murder, as well as to the victim's mother and 
police.  The Commonwealth also emphasized that the ortho-
tolidine tests that came back positive were indicative of the 
presence of blood.  The Commonwealth, however, did not mention 
the unidentified hairs found on the kitchen floor or on the 
knife. 
Defense counsel emphasized the lack of physical evidence, 
i.e., fingerprints, blood, or hair, conclusively tying the 
defendant to the victim's murder.  Defense counsel emphasized 
that, although the murder scene was a "blood bath," there was no 
conclusive proof of blood on the defendant's hands, clothes, or 
car.  Defense counsel attacked the presumptive ortho-tolidine 
testing as too sensitive to too many different substances.  
 
victim had type B blood, but the serologist could not determine 
whether he also was a secretor. 
15 
 
Defense counsel also emphasized that the hair found on the knife 
at the crime scene did not match that of either the defendant or 
the victim.  Defense counsel then emphasized the victim's 
alleged fear of anonymous drug dealers who, the victim claimed, 
were after his uncle. 
The jury convicted the defendant of murder in the first 
degree on a theory of extreme cruelty or atrocity.  This court 
affirmed the conviction on direct appeal.  See Duguay, 430 Mass. 
at 398.  In his direct appeal, we concluded that the ortho-
tolidine screening tests were not unfairly prejudicial without 
confirmatory testing, particularly where the defendant "freely 
and repeatedly pointed out the limitations of the test."  Id. at 
402. 
In 2016, following multiple pro se motions by the 
defendant, as well as a petition for Federal habeas corpus 
review, the defendant filed a motion for postconviction DNA 
analysis pursuant to G. L. c. 278A.  The motion was allowed.  
The defendant then filed a motion for a new trial and, in 
support, presented forensic retesting of the evidence examined 
by Bunnell. 
The forensic retesting of the evidence included serology 
and short tandem repeat (STR) analysis DNA testing on the knife, 
and the defendant's jeans, jacket, turtleneck shirt, and 
sneakers.  STR testing also was conducted on the broken knife 
16 
 
handle, the hair from the knife, and a hair sample from the 
victim's uncle.12 
STR analysis on the left exterior pocket of the defendant's 
jeans, although inconclusive, contained a mixed profile with one 
male contributor.  The front knee areas of the jeans had on them 
DNA consistent with that of the defendant, and the victim was 
excluded as the source of that DNA profile.  The same was true 
about the back of the right knee of the defendant's jeans.  The 
testing on the exterior front right pocket, back right pocket, 
back of the left knee, and back left pocket also was 
inconclusive. 
STR analysis on the jacket resulted in a mixture of two 
profiles on the exterior front left chest; both the defendant 
and victim were excluded as contributors of those profiles.  The 
remainder of the testing on the jacket either was inconclusive 
or produced no DNA profile.  The same is true of the defendant's 
turtleneck shirt, as no conclusions could be made about a 
partial DNA profile that was discovered on the turtleneck shirt.  
Analysis of the defendant's sneakers also resulted in the 
 
12 The defendant submitted an affidavit of a private 
forensic DNA consultant who averred that the new short tandem 
repeat (STR) analysis testing kits were more sensitive than 
methods used at the time of the victim's murder.  The test used 
was the extremely sensitive PowerPlex Fusion 6C DNA test, which 
was one of the latest generations of STR tests. 
17 
 
detection of a partial mixed profile, but again, no conclusion 
could be drawn from it. 
Finally, a DNA profile on the knife blade and handle 
matched the victim and excluded the defendant.  The same applies 
to a DNA profile from blood spatter on the wall behind the 
couch.  DNA on a cigarette from the crime scene matched that of 
the victim and excluded the defendant, which also was the result 
of sperm fractions taken from the victim's rectum with a rectal 
swab. 
The defendant also obtained mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) 
testing on hair samples taken from the knife at the crime scene, 
as well as from the victim's maternal uncle.  The testing 
excluded Gomes and his maternal relatives as contributors to the 
hairs on the knife, and also excluded the defendant. 
In addition to DNA analysis, phenolphthalein presumptive 
blood testing was performed on many of the areas that tested 
positive during Bunnell's ortho-tolidine testing, including the 
defendant's sneakers, turtleneck shirt, jeans, and jacket.  The 
defendant's jeans tested negative.  His jacket tested 
inconclusive yet contained a component that reacted with 
phenolphthalein.  The turtleneck shirt and sneakers tested 
negative; however, the knife and knife handle tested positive. 
The defendant also presented an affidavit from William 
Best, a certified forensic examiner who reviewed the defendant's 
18 
 
case file, including police and forensic reports, as well as 
trial testimony of Bunnell and the State serologist.  Best 
averred that presumptive tests like ortho-tolidine tests do not 
prove the presence of blood with certainty and may give false 
positive and negative results.13  Best raised doubts as to the 
validity of the ortho-tolidine results.  For example, based on 
Bunnell's laboratory notes, Best averred that several test 
results she reported as positive were only "weak positive" 
results and therefore should have been reported as negative 
results.14 
In response to the forensic and DNA evidence submitted by 
the defendant, the Commonwealth submitted an affidavit of its 
own expert, Diane Biagiotti, a forensic scientist in the DNA 
unit of the State police crime lab.  She averred that 
environmental factors, such as heat, humidity, and sunlight, as 
well as the passage of time, can degrade DNA samples, thus 
affecting any DNA profile obtained.  Biagiotti averred that DNA 
 
13 The defendant submitted a 1991 article from the Journal 
of Forensic Sciences that phenolphthalein is the best 
presumptive test for blood because it is the most specific and 
does not react to plant peroxidases like the ortho-tolidine 
testing.  Cox, A Study of the Sensitivity and Specificity of 
Four Presumptive Tests for Blood, 36 J. Forensic Sci. 1503, 
1503-1511 (Sept. 1991). 
 
14 The defendant also introduced an affidavit from Tracey 
Ray, a forensic chemist and consultant, who echoed the opinion 
of Best that Bunnell should not have reported certain tests as 
positive.  Ray viewed Bunnell's trial testimony as misleading. 
19 
 
profiles taken so many years later may not be suitable for 
comparison.  Furthermore, she also declared that STR DNA 
testing, while human specific, cannot determine from which types 
of cells or biological fluid the DNA profile originated. 
Despite the recent DNA and forensic analysis discussed 
supra, the motion judge denied the defendant's latest motion for 
a new trial.  The judge found that neither the phenolphthalein 
presumptive blood testing nor the mtDNA testing was newly 
discovered.15  While STR DNA testing was available at the time of 
trial, the specific PowerPlex Fusion 6C DNA test was not.  Thus, 
the motion judge concluded that the evidence was newly 
discovered.  Where the evidence provided only impeachment value, 
and merely was cumulative of much of the other evidence at 
trial, the motion judge concluded that the new evidence did not 
cast real doubt on the justice of the defendant's conviction. 
The defendant filed a timely notice of appeal in the 
Superior Court.  In the county court, he then filed a petition 
for leave to appeal from the denial of his motion for a new 
trial pursuant to G. L. c. 278, § 33E, which was granted by a 
single justice. 
 
15 Although the judge found that this testing did not 
constitute newly discovered evidence, he determined that the 
evidence did not create a substantial risk of a miscarriage of 
justice.  The same is true for the defendant's argument in his 
motion that there was a confluence of factors that warranted the 
order of a new trial. 
20 
 
 
Discussion.  "Rule 30 (b) of the Massachusetts Rules of 
Criminal Procedure, as appearing in 435 Mass. 1501 (2001), 
authorizes a judge to 'grant a new trial at any time if it 
appears that justice may not have been done.'"  Commonwealth v. 
Watkins (No. 1), 486 Mass. 801, 803-804 (2021).  See 
Commonwealth v. Mazza, 484 Mass. 539, 551 (2020).  "A motion for 
a new trial is addressed to the sound discretion of the judge."  
Commonwealth v. Sanchez, 485 Mass. 491, 498 (2020).  Generally, 
"[a]n appellate court will examine the motion judge's conclusion 
only to determine whether there has been a significant error of 
law or other abuse of discretion."  Id., quoting Commonwealth v. 
DiBenedetto, 458 Mass. 657, 664 (2011).  However, where the 
motion judge neither presided over the trial nor conducted an 
evidentiary hearing, we are in as good a position as the motion 
judge to assess the documentary evidence found within the 
record, thus allowing this court to review the judge's decision 
de novo.  See Mazza, supra at 547. 
Where the defendant's motion for a new trial is based on 
new evidence, the defendant must demonstrate that (1) "the 
evidence is either 'newly discovered' or 'newly available,'" and 
that (2) "it 'casts real doubt' on the justice of the 
defendant's conviction."  See Sullivan, 469 Mass. at 350.  See 
also Commonwealth v. Grace, 397 Mass. 303, 305-306 (1986).  "New 
evidence will cast real doubt on the justice of the conviction 
21 
 
if there is a substantial risk that the jury would have reached 
a different conclusion had the evidence been admitted at trial."  
Sullivan, supra, citing Grace, supra at 306. 
1.  STR DNA testing.  First, the defendant argues that the 
STR DNA testing is newly available evidence that would have 
played a role in the jury's deliberations.  More specifically, 
the defendant alleges that the DNA results obtained from the 
retesting of the defendant's clothes and sneakers and the murder 
weapons casts real doubt on the justice of the defendant's 
conviction. 
Before analyzing whether the STR DNA testing casts such 
real doubt, we must first analyze whether the evidence 
constitutes "newly discovered," or "newly available," evidence.  
See Grace, 397 Mass. at 306 (defendant must demonstrate that new 
evidence was "unknown to the defendant or his counsel and not 
reasonably discoverable by them at the time of trial").  While 
the motion judge found that STR DNA testing existed at the time 
of the defendant's trial, see Commonwealth v. Rosier, 425 Mass. 
807, 811-813 (1997), the particular test, i.e., the PowerPlex 
Fusion 6C DNA test, is an extremely sensitive, new generation of 
STR DNA testing that was not available in 1997.  Therefore, we 
conclude that the defendant has satisfied his initial burden, 
i.e., that the STR DNA testing constitutes newly available 
evidence.  See Sullivan, 469 Mass. at 350 n.6 (particular 
22 
 
forensic testing methodology that had not yet been developed or 
gained acceptance by courts may constitute newly available 
evidence). 
Because the STR DNA testing constitutes newly available 
evidence, our analysis hinges on whether such evidence would 
have been a real factor in the jury's deliberations, such that 
it would have cast real doubt on the justice of the defendant's 
conviction.  See Commonwealth v. Lessieur, 472 Mass. 317, 331, 
cert. denied, 577 U.S. 963 (2015), quoting Commonwealth v. 
Santiago, 458 Mass. 405, 415 (2010) ("A defendant seeking a new 
trial on the ground of newly discovered evidence must establish 
both that the evidence is newly discovered and that it casts 
real doubt on the justice of the conviction" [emphasis added]). 
The defendant argues that the STR DNA testing swabbed the 
exact same areas of the defendant's clothes and sneakers that 
Bunnell testified were positive for the presence of blood, and 
obtained partial DNA profiles from three small areas of the 
defendant's jeans and one small area of the defendant's jacket, 
which excluded the victim as a possible contributor.  Where the 
victim was excluded from the partial DNA profiles collected from 
the defendant's jeans, the defendant argues that the DNA 
evidence demonstrated that the victim's blood was absent from 
the defendant's clothes; thus, the defendant contends, this 
evidence conclusively refuted Bunnell's testimony that the 
23 
 
ortho-tolidine testing indicated the presence of blood on his 
clothes.  Therefore, the defendant argues that Bunnell's 
testimony and the admission of her handwritten notes were 
improper. 
The defendant's argument is somewhat misleading, however, 
because it assumes that, because the victim conclusively was 
excluded from these partial DNA profiles, it necessarily also 
must follow that the victim's DNA entirely was not present on 
the defendant's clothes.  While the STR DNA testing excludes the 
victim as a contributor to the specific partial DNA profiles 
found on the defendant's jacket and jeans, most, if not all, of 
the other DNA testing was inconclusive at best.  Much of the 
other partial DNA profiles from the defendant's clothes could 
not either include or exclude the victim as a possible 
contributor.  The same is true from the testing of the 
defendant's sneakers, because while a partial DNA profile was 
found on the sneakers, no conclusion could be drawn as to 
whether the victim was included as a contributor to the profile. 
The defendant compares the STR DNA testing to the 
additional testing done in Commonwealth v. Cowels, 470 Mass. 607 
(2015).  In Cowels, the Commonwealth introduced two bloodied 
towels at trial to suggest that both defendants had used the 
towels to clean themselves after stabbing and killing the 
victim.  Id. at 607-608.  Testing of the towels at that time, 
24 
 
however, neither identified nor excluded the defendants and the 
victim as the sources of the blood.  Id. at 608.  It was not 
until additional testing was done on one of the towels, years 
after the defendants' convictions had been affirmed, that it was 
revealed that the blood on the towel conclusively did not belong 
to either the defendants or the victim, but instead belonged to 
an unidentified male.  Id.  In ordering a new trial, this court 
emphasized that there was no other forensic evidence at the 
crime scene, except the towel, that was linked to the 
defendants.  Id. at 619.  In a case with a "dearth of physical 
evidence," the towels served as the most important piece of 
evidence to corroborate the testimony of the prosecution's key 
witness, who presented significant credibility issues.  See id.  
Thus, the towels likely were a real factor in the jury's 
deliberations and ultimate convictions of the defendants.  Id. 
at 623-624. 
Unlike in Cowels, where it conclusively was proved that 
none of the blood found on the towel belonged to either the 
defendant or the victim, the STR DNA testing of the defendant's 
clothes and sneakers does not exclude both the defendant and the 
victim as the contributor of the partial DNA profile.  See id. 
at 620 (new testing conclusively established that blood did not 
come from either defendants or victim).  It also does not point 
conclusively to an unidentified male, as did the additional 
25 
 
testing done in Cowels.  See id.  Rather, the STR DNA testing 
only conclusively excludes the victim as a contributor to a 
partial DNA profile on three small areas of the defendant's 
jeans and one small area on his jacket. 
Furthermore, in Cowels, the bloodied towel was the only 
piece of physical evidence that linked the defendants to the 
bloody stabbing.  See id. at 621.  See also Sullivan, 469 Mass. 
at 352 (purported blood on defendant's cuffs and hair in 
defendant's pocket were "sole pieces of evidence indicating the 
defendant had been in the presence of the victim during the 
killing").  Here, there were numerous other pieces of physical 
evidence, beyond the defendant's jacket and jeans, that tested 
positive for the presence of blood following ortho-tolidine 
testing that would still link the defendant to the murder.16 
At best, where the vast majority of the additional STR DNA 
testing rendered inconclusive results, and where only the victim 
was excluded from partial DNA profiles recovered from only four 
of the many small areas of the victim's clothes that were 
 
16 Other pieces of evidence that tested positive for the 
presence of blood following ortho-tolidine testing, excluding 
the defendant's jeans and jacket, included the following:  the 
defendant's hands, his sneakers, the soles of his feet, the 
light switch at his home, the bathroom sink, the bathtub faucet, 
the movable shower head in the bathtub, the bottom tile of the 
bathtub, the steering wheel of his car, the gear shift, the 
brake and gasoline pedals, the driver's seat, and the victim's 
bathroom sink. 
26 
 
retested, the additional testing would serve only to impeach 
Bunnell's testimony that the presumptive ortho-tolidine testing 
indicated the presence of blood on the defendant's clothes.  Cf. 
Cowels, 470 Mass. at 620 (test that would exclude definitively 
defendants and victim as source of DNA profile, and instead 
would point to unidentified male as source of DNA, would not 
merely reduce weight that jury might give evidence, but would 
instead bar admission of such evidence).  It does not, as the 
defendant argues, serve as a bar to the admission of Bunnell's 
testimony that the ortho-tolidine testing returned positive 
results for the presence of blood on much of the defendant's 
clothes.  See id. 
Moreover, the impeachment value of the additional STR DNA 
testing also likely is to be quite low because the defendant 
"freely and repeatedly pointed out the limitations of the 
[ortho-tolidine] test."  Duguay, 430 Mass. at 402.  Although the 
prosecutor did allude to the importance of Bunnell's testimony 
on the ortho-tolidine testing, this argument followed defense 
counsel's powerful cross-examination of Bunnell in which defense 
counsel had asked her, "Now, in your -- and by the way, your 
testimony regarding the ortho-toluidine test, you do not mean to 
leave with this jury that you found blood on this young man, 
[the defendant], do you?"  Bunnell replied, "No."  In multiple 
follow-up answers after continued cross-examination from defense 
27 
 
counsel, Bunnell confirmed that she was not testifying that the 
presence of blood was found on the defendant. 
These pieces of physical evidence, i.e., the defendant's 
jacket and jeans, were not the linchpin in the Commonwealth's 
case.  Cf. Commonwealth v. Cameron, 473 Mass. 100, 110 (2015) 
(DNA evidence from complainant's underwear tipped scale against 
defendant at trial, and newly discovered evidence eliminated 
defendant as source of semen on complainant's underwear, thus 
negating key piece of physical evidence that was real factor in 
corroborating complainant's testimony).  The strength of the 
Commonwealth's case primarily was built on the other largely 
circumstantial evidence of the defendant's guilt, which included 
the defendant's hostility toward the victim following the 
turmoil in their intimate relationship, the defendant's threat 
to the victim to come over and "fuck him up," the defendant's 
statement to a third party prior to the murder that he wanted to 
kill the victim, the defendant's proximity to the victim's house 
and opportunity to commit the crime, statements to police that 
demonstrated a consciousness of guilt,17 and threatening 
telephone calls to the victim's mother in which the defendant 
 
17 After the defendant received the Miranda warnings, an 
officer asked the defendant to tell the officers what had 
happened.  The defendant replied, "If I tell you what happened 
you'll put me away for the rest of my life." 
28 
 
told her to "get ready for a fun ride at the courthouse."18  
Duguay, 430 Mass. at 399. 
Ultimately, "[t]he weight and credibility of the evidence 
is the province of the jury."  Commonwealth v. Dubois, 451 Mass. 
20, 28 (2008).  "Newly discovered evidence that tends merely to 
impeach the credibility of a witness will not ordinarily be the 
basis of a new trial."  Commonwealth v. Sleeper, 435 Mass. 581, 
607 (2002), quoting Commonwealth v. Lo, 428 Mass. 45, 53 (1998).  
Where much of the STR DNA testing rendered inconclusive results, 
and where the additional testing that excluded the victim as the 
contributor to a small number of partial DNA profiles would have 
been admissible only to impeach the already powerfully impeached 
testimony from Bunnell, we conclude that the newly available 
evidence likely would not have been a real factor in the jury's 
 
18 The defendant also argues that additional STR DNA testing 
on the murder weapons, i.e., the knife and the broken knife 
handle that were found, casts real doubt on the justice of the 
defendant's conviction.  STR DNA testing revealed three partial 
profiles on the weapons, which statistically included the victim 
as the source and statistically excluded the defendant as the 
source.  Contrary to the defendant's argument, this additional 
evidence only would have served for impeachment value, similar 
to the STR DNA testing performed on the defendant's clothes that 
was discussed supra.  See Commonwealth v. Upton, 484 Mass. 155, 
168 (2020) (additional newly available impeachment evidence 
generally does not warrant new trial).  Therefore, the 
additional testing does not cast real doubt on the justice of 
the defendant's conviction, particularly in light of the 
strength of the other evidence strongly supporting the 
defendant's guilt.  See id. 
29 
 
deliberations and does not cast real doubt on the justice of the 
defendant's conviction.  Sullivan, 469 Mass. at 350-351. 
2.  Seminal fluid residue.  The defendant argues that the 
testing of two swabs of the victim's rectum, which revealed two 
partial DNA profiles that were consistent with the victim, 
demonstrates that the defendant was not the contributor of the 
semen evidence.  The defendant claims that the newly available 
DNA evidence that excludes him as a possible donor of the 
seminal fluid residue would have been a real factor in the 
jury's deliberations and thus warrants a new trial.  We 
disagree. 
Even assuming that the DNA testing on the two swabs from 
the victim's rectum constitutes newly available evidence, the 
evidence does not cast real doubt on the justice of the 
conviction.  At trial, the Commonwealth's serologist declined to 
exclude conclusively the defendant as the donor of the seminal 
fluid residue.  She instead testified that she could form no 
conclusion as to the source of the sperm.  While the DNA testing 
certainly would impeach this testimony from the Commonwealth's 
serologist, evidence that tends only to impeach the 
Commonwealth's witness generally is insufficient to warrant a 
new trial.  See Sleeper, 435 Mass. at 607 (newly discovered 
evidence that tends only to impeach credibility of witness not 
ordinarily grounds for new trial).  See also Commonwealth v. 
30 
 
Mitchell, 62 Mass. App. Ct. 769, 776 (2005) (same).  
Furthermore, although the serologist declined to exclude the 
defendant as a contributor, her testimony already was impeached 
powerfully when she acknowledged both that the seminal fluid 
residue was type B blood and that the defendant had type A 
blood. 
The additional DNA evidence also merely would have been 
cumulative of the other evidence presented at trial, which 
overwhelmingly demonstrated that the defendant and victim were 
in an intimate relationship.  Compare Commonwealth v. Eagles, 
491 Mass. 210, 222 (2023) (hair evidence cumulatively pointed to 
strong, overwhelming showing that defendant was in fact 
perpetrator), with Sullivan, 469 Mass. at 352 (blood on 
defendant's cuffs and hair in defendant's pockets were different 
in kind and not merely cumulative of other evidence at trial). 
To the extent that the defendant argues that the seminal fluid 
was a key factor for the Commonwealth's theory of the 
defendant's motive,19 i.e., that he was a "jilted lover," there 
was extensive evidence presented at trial that the defendant and 
victim were in an on-and-off intimate relationship before the 
victim's death, irrespective of the evidence of the seminal 
fluid residue.  Such evidence included that (1) the defendant 
 
19 Contrary to the defendant's argument, the Commonwealth 
did not address the semen evidence in its closing argument. 
31 
 
told the victim's stepfather that he and the victim were in a 
sexual relationship; (2) the defendant told the victim's prior 
girlfriend that he loved the victim; (3) the defendant harassed 
the victim's previous girlfriend to persuade the victim to 
perform oral sex on him; (4) after the victim revealed to his 
girlfriend that the defendant had performed oral sex on him, the 
defendant began to call her house to harass her, bragging that 
he had had sex with the victim; (5) after the defendant obtained 
a judgment against the victim in the days leading up to the 
murder, they were intimate because the defendant told the victim 
that he would rather have relations with the victim than be paid 
the money owed under the judgment; and (6) the defendant 
himself, in perhaps the most impactful evidence of the intimate 
relationship, admitted to his sexual relationship with the 
victim both in a telephone call to the victim's mother 
approximately twenty minutes before the murder and to the police 
during questioning.  Duguay, 430 Mass. at 399-400.  Therefore, 
we conclude that the evidence of the seminal fluid residue does 
not cast real doubt on the justice of the defendant's 
conviction.  Sullivan, 469 Mass. at 350-351. 
3.  Forensic testing of hair.  The defendant argues that 
the additional mtDNA testing revealed that the hair found on the 
murder weapon belonged to neither the defendant nor the victim.  
Such testing was done on the hair found on the murder weapon, 
32 
 
the hair taken from the victim's maternal uncle, and a saliva 
sample taken from the defendant.  The testing revealed that the 
defendant, Gomes, and all of their maternal relatives were 
excluded as the source of the hair on the knife. 
The victim is a maternal relative of his uncle, Gomes, and 
where Gomes's maternal relatives were excluded as the source of 
the hair, the defendant argues that the new mtDNA testing 
conclusively excludes the victim as a source of the hair 
evidence.  This new conclusive evidence would have been a real 
factor in the jury's deliberations, according to the defendant, 
and casts real doubt on the justice of the defendant's 
conviction.20 
 
20 The Commonwealth disagrees with the defendant's argument 
that the additional mtDNA testing conclusively excludes the hair 
as that of the victim.  The motion judge did not have the 
benefit of the results of the most recent DNA tests performed, 
which the Commonwealth provided in its appendix in this appeal.  
The Commonwealth claims that the results of the most recent 
testing confirm that the hair on the murder weapon belonged to 
the victim because the partial DNA profile matched the victim.  
The defendant disagrees because Bunnell testified that the hair 
was found adhered to the blood found on the murder weapon and 
argues that it was the victim's blood that produced the match of 
the victim to the partial DNA profile that was discovered.  
Notwithstanding this factual dispute between the parties, where 
we conclude infra that the additional testing would have been at 
best cumulative of the evidence presented at trial, i.e., that 
the hair belonged to neither the defendant nor the victim, the 
evidence does not cast real doubt on the justice of the 
defendant's conviction and does not entitle the defendant to a 
new trial.  See Commonwealth v. Moore, 489 Mass. 735, 749 
(2022). 
33 
 
The motion judge found that the defendant failed to 
demonstrate that mtDNA testing was unavailable in 1997 at the 
time of the defendant's trial.  See Commonwealth v. Baker, 440 
Mass. 519, 528 (2003) (mtDNA analysis of hair available in 
1997).  Nonetheless, even if we were to assume that the 
additional mtDNA testing constitutes newly discovered evidence, 
the evidence would not have been a real factor in the jury's 
deliberations.  At trial, Bunnell testified that the hair sample 
found from the knife microscopically was compared to hair 
samples taken from the defendant and the victim.  Bunnell 
testified that the hair sample was similar to neither the 
defendant's nor the victim's hair.  The defendant thus was able 
to argue to the jury that the murder was committed by an 
unidentified third-party culprit, an argument clearly rejected 
by the jury.  See Commonwealth v. Barry, 481 Mass. 388, 400, 
cert. denied, 140 S. Ct. 51 (2019) (although exculpatory 
evidence further would call into question credibility of 
witness, jury clearly opted to convict defendant despite such 
extensive credibility issues).  Therefore, much like the semen 
evidence, where the additional forensic testing merely is 
cumulative of the evidence at trial, and where the hair evidence 
was not an important factor in the Commonwealth's case,21 we 
 
21 Like the semen evidence, the Commonwealth did not address 
the hair evidence in its closing. 
34 
 
conclude that the additional mtDNA testing that purportedly and 
conclusively would exclude the victim as the source of the hair 
found on the murder weapon does not cast real doubt on the 
justice of the defendant's conviction.  See Commonwealth v. 
Teixeira, 486 Mass. 617, 641 (2021) (where defense counsel 
repeatedly cast doubt on witness's credibility and reliability, 
newly discovered evidence that is cumulative of other 
significant impeachment evidence not grounds for new trial). 
4.  Phenolphthalein testing.  The defendant argues that the 
phenolphthalein presumptive testing for the presence of blood 
constitutes newly discovered evidence that casts real doubt on 
the justice of his conviction.  Many of the items that tested 
positive for the presence of blood after Bunnell conducted 
ortho-tolidine testing were retested using a different 
presumptive test for the presence of blood, known as 
phenolphthalein testing.  This alternative testing is said to be 
a better presumptive test for blood because it is the most 
specific presumptive testing available and does not react to 
plant peroxidases, as does ortho-tolidine testing. 
Although the phenolphthalein testing is better testing than 
the ortho-tolidine testing performed by Bunnell, we disagree 
that the phenolphthalein testing constitutes newly available 
evidence, because phenolphthalein testing was available to the 
defendant at the time of trial.  See Commonwealth v. 
35 
 
DiBenedetto, 475 Mass. 429, 435 (2016) (phenolphthalein test 
performed in 1993).  See also Grace, 397 Mass. at 306 (newly 
available evidence must be "unknown to the defendant or his 
counsel and not reasonably discoverable by them at the time of 
trial" [emphasis added]).  Nonetheless, even if we were to 
assume that the phenolphthalein testing constitutes newly 
available evidence, at best, the phenolphthalein testing, 
similar to the new STR DNA testing, would be useful only to 
impeach Bunnell's testimony.  Cf. Cowels, 470 Mass. at 620 (test 
that would exclude definitively defendants and victim as source 
of DNA profile, and instead would point to unidentified male as 
source of DNA, would not merely reduce weight that jury might 
give evidence, but instead would also bar admission of such 
evidence).  The phenolphthalein testing would serve only as a 
competing presumptive testing, and similar to the STR DNA 
testing discussed supra, it would not bar the admission of 
Bunnell's testimony and handwritten notes on the ortho-tolidine 
testing that she conducted prior to trial.  Cf. id. 
Furthermore, as we discussed supra, Bunnell's testimony on 
the ortho-tolidine testing was already extensively impeached, 
and any additional impeachment evidence would be cumulative 
evidence and likely would not be a real factor in the jury's 
deliberation.  See Teixeira, 486 Mass. at 641.  See also 
Commonwealth v. Moore, 489 Mass. 735, 749 (2022) (new evidence 
36 
 
at best would provide alternate ground for impeachment and, 
thus, would not be real factor in jury's deliberations).  We 
conclude that the additional evidence of negative 
phenolphthalein testing does not cast real doubt on the justice 
of the defendant's conviction.  Sullivan, 469 Mass. at 350-351. 
5.  Confluence of factors.  The defendant argues that there 
exists a confluence of factors that act in concert with the 
newly available evidence to warrant the granting of a new trial 
pursuant to Mass. R. Crim. P. 30 (b).  See Commonwealth v. 
Rosario, 477 Mass. 69, 77-78 (2017).  According to the 
defendant, those factors include that (1) the original forensic 
evidence was not reliable; (2) the jury should not have heard 
the telephone calls between the defendant and the victim that 
were intercepted illegally by the victim's neighbor; (3) the 
murder possibly was committed by two people; (4) it was 
"impossible" for the defendant to be the murderer; and (5) the 
jury did not hear from the defendant's alibi witness, the 
defendant's girlfriend. 
"If a defendant fails to raise a claim that is generally 
known and available at the time of trial or direct appeal or in 
the first motion for postconviction relief, the claim is 
waived."  Rodwell v. Commonwealth, 432 Mass. 1016, 1018 (2000), 
citing Commonwealth v. Ambers, 397 Mass. 705, 707 n.2 (1986).  
Here, nothing in the record suggests that these arguments were 
37 
 
unavailable to the defendant at the time of trial, his direct 
appeal, and his first motion for postconviction relief; where 
the defendant either failed to raise these arguments in a timely 
fashion, or now attempts to relitigate issues that already have 
been addressed,22 the arguments are waived.  See Rodwell, supra.  
See also Mains v. Commonwealth, 433 Mass. 30, 33-34 (2000). 
6.  Discovery motion.  The defendant argues that the judge 
abused his discretion in implicitly denying his motion for 
postconviction discovery.  The defendant sought telephone 
records, search warrant records, criminal history records, and 
police records that he believed supported his alibi and third-
party culprit claims.  The discovery relates to the defendant's 
purported alibi witness, a claim that already has been waived by 
the defendant and addressed on Federal habeas corpus review.  
See Duguay v. Spencer, 791 F. Supp. 2d 271, 271-272 (D. Mass. 
2011). 
 
22 The defendant previously raised the argument about the 
illegally intercepted telephone calls in a prior pro se motion 
for a new trial, which already was denied on grounds of waiver.  
The defendant also raised the argument concerning the alibi 
witness on Federal habeas corpus review.  Duguay v. Spencer, 791 
F. Supp. 2d 271, 271 (D. Mass. 2011).  The failure to call the 
alibi witness manifestly was not unreasonable, however, and did 
not give rise to an ineffective assistance of counsel claim, 
because trial counsel made a strategic decision not to call the 
witness after speaking with her on numerous occasions and 
learning that her testimony would not help the defendant.  Id. 
at 271-272. 
38 
 
The defendant also believes that the discovery could 
confirm the defendant's belief that the victim and Gerome 
Bradley were codefendants in a breaking and entering case 
committed shortly before the victim's murder, thus giving 
Bradley a motive to kill the victim.  The defendant's third-
party culprit defense is entirely speculative, however, and 
evidence of a third party's ill will or possible motive is 
insufficient to support a defense under the third-party culprit 
doctrine.23  Commonwealth v. Andrade, 488 Mass. 522, 533 (2021).  
At bottom, the defendant must make a prima facie showing that 
the materials sought reasonably are likely to lead to evidence 
that materially would have benefited his defense, and would have 
factored into the jury's deliberations.  See Commonwealth v. 
Moffat, 486 Mass. 193, 207 (2020).  Where the defendant provides 
nothing more than mere speculation as to what the requested 
discovery likely would lead, we discern no abuse of discretion 
in the motion judge's implicit denial of the defendant's 
postconviction motion for discovery. 
 
23 The defendant also must prove that the alleged third-
party culprit had the motive, intent, and opportunity to commit 
the crime.  Commonwealth v. Silva-Santiago, 453 Mass. 782, 800 
(2009).  The defendant does not do so here.  See Commonwealth v. 
Andrade, 488 Mass. 522, 533 (2021) (third-party culprit evidence 
inadmissible when it is neither "rare" nor "unique" and "lack[s] 
probative value, [is] unduly prejudicial, and [is] likely to 
divert the jury's attention"). 
39 
 
Accordingly, we affirm the denial of the defendant's motion 
for a new trial and his motion for postconviction discovery. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
So ordered.