Opinion ID: 200987
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Neverson's State Conviction

Text: 5 In 1987, a Massachusetts grand jury indicted Neverson for the murder of Leshawna Wright, his infant stepdaughter. His first trial, held in 1989, resulted in a deadlocked jury and a court-ordered judgment of acquittal to the extent that the indictment charged first-degree murder. In 1990, the Commonwealth tried again. At the trial, the prosecution presented expert testimony that blunt force trauma was the cause of the baby's death. The child's injuries included fractured ribs, abrasions and contusions, and severe damage to internal organs. Two medical experts testified for the prosecution that these injuries were likely inflicted by blunt, forceful blows, and that they were inconsistent with a household accident. Further, despite minor discrepancies in their testimony, both experts concluded that Leshawna's death occurred at a time when Neverson was home alone with the baby and her stepbrother. 6 The defense's theory was that Leshawna had fallen from the top of the bunk bed in the bedroom shared by the two children. Neverson proposed to offer the testimony of Dr. James Masi, a professor of physics and biomechanics. Dr. Masi was prepared to testify that a child of Leshawna's size who fell from a height of sixty-three inches, the distance between the top bunk and the floor, would strike the floor with sufficient force that she would probably not survive. Dr. Masi acknowledged on voir dire, however, that his expertise was in physics, not in the medical consequences of falls. For that reason, the trial judge barred Dr. Masi from testifying to the likely medical consequences to Leshawna of a fall from the bunk bed, though the judge was prepared to allow testimony concerning the velocity and force with which the child would strike the floor. Neverson elected not to have Dr. Masi testify; instead, he took the stand and testified that he did not injure the child. 7 On July 24, 1990, the jury found Neverson guilty of involuntary manslaughter but acquitted him of second-degree murder. He was sentenced to serve sixteen to nineteen years in prison. Neverson brought a timely appeal in the Massachusetts Appeals Court, where he argued that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict and that the trial court erred in refusing to allow Dr. Masi to testify. The court rejected both arguments, highlighting the evidence offered by the prosecution's experts and upholding the exclusion of Dr. Masi's proposed testimony in part because it contained obvious rubbish. Commonwealth v. Neverson, 35 Mass.App.Ct. 913, 619 N.E.2d 344, 345-46 (1993). The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court denied further appellate review on October 25, 1993. Commonwealth v. Neverson, 416 Mass. 1106, 622 N.E.2d 1364 (1993) (table). Neverson's conviction became final when the ninety-day period for seeking certiorari expired on January 23, 1994. See Clay v. United States, 537 U.S. 522, 527, 123 S.Ct. 1072, 155 L.Ed.2d 88 (2003) (discussing finality for purposes of post-conviction relief). 8