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Appeals court presses parties on unsigned cooperation draft in Abdullah appeal
Summary
An Appeals Court panel questioned whether an unsigned, uncommunicated draft cooperation agreement found on a prosecutor's computer, together with stays and a resentencing understanding, could amount to an undisclosed inducement warranting a new trial for Shaheed Abdullah.
A three-judge panel of the Massachusetts Appeals Court heard competing arguments Tuesday over whether an unsigned draft cooperation agreement and prior stays of sentence created an undisclosed inducement that should trigger a new trial for Shaheed Abdullah (Commonwealth v. Shaheed Abdullah, 2024-1031). Presiding Justice Ariane Bueno introduced the panel and invited counsel to begin.
The issue returned to the appeals court after a prior remand that left open whether resentencing-related understandings and stays, combined with other evidence, could support relief. James McKenna, counsel for Abdullah, told the panel the strongest point on appeal is estoppel and that newly available material shows the prosecutor had typed a draft…
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