Judge denies motion to dismiss murder charge against Brian Walshe
The judge presiding over Brian Walshe 's murder case denied a motion to dismiss the murder charge against him , finding the grand jury that indicted Walshe had ample evidence before it to bring a first-degree murder charge against him.
Walshe is accused of killing his wife, Ana, in the Cohasset home they shared with their three children in early 2023, then dismembering her body in the basement and disposing of her remains in dumpsters. Ana Walshe's body has never been found.
The motion from Brian Walshe's lawyers sought the dismissal of the first-degree murder charge on the grounds that prosecutors were required to present sufficient evidence on each theory of murder they might pursue at trial. In Walshe's case, prosecutors intend to pursue theories of deliberate premeditation and extreme atrocity and cruelty.
If the evidence on one theory was insufficient to support the indictment, his lawyers contended, the portion of the indictment accusing Walshe of murder on that theory should be thrown out.
But Judge Diane Freniere ruled the argument was an "incorrect statement of the law."
"Contrary to the defendant's contention, if the evidence before the grand jury was sufficient under one of the aggravating circumstances ... the entire indictment for murder stands," Freniere wrote.
Walshe's lawyers also argued there was insufficient evidence that the killing of his wife was a premeditated murder. Freniere shot down that argument as well.
Freniere noted that the grand jury heard testimony from Ana Walshe's friends that the couple were experiencing ongoing troubles in their marriage, including financial problems, infidelity and legal issues tied to Brian Walshe's federal art fraud case.
Yet on New Year's Eve 2022, the Walshes hosted Ana Walshe's former boss, Gem Mutlu, for dinner. Mutlu described a joyful atmosphere that night and described Brian Walshe as "very attentive."
Mutlu left around 1 or 1:30 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2023. When Brian Walshe told him his wife had gone missing that day, Mutlu asked if the couple argued. Brian Walshe responded, "did it look like we had an argument that night?"
"The grand jury could infer from such an interaction that Brian had used the New Years' Eve dinner with Mutlu as a façade so that Mutlu would deflect any suspicion away from Brian when Ana went missing," Freniere wrote in her decision.
Freniere laid out other key evidence against Walshe to support premeditation.
The grand jury heard evidence that Walshe told Mutlu he lost his phone on Jan. 1, 2023 — a claim Freniere said could have led to the inference that Walshe was covering for not trying to contact his wife that day, when he claimed she went missing.
Walshe also arranged for a nanny to watch his and his wife's children on New Year's Day, and told his wife they were going to an "elaborate dinner with many courses" in Marblehead.
"It was reasonable for the grand jury to infer that Brian had also lied ... about New Years' Day plans, and that he had done so to ensure Ana did not make other plans and their children were occupied to allow himself time to further conceal his crime," Freniere wrote.
Walshe's lawyers also objected to prosecutors' reliance on evidence of his motive, arguing it did not support a theory of premeditation. Freniere disagreed, finding the "evidence of motive was significant."
Ana Walshe wanted her children to live with her in Washington, D.C., where she worked. But the chance of Brian Walshe getting a sentence of home confinement in his art fraud case was substantially less if he did not live with his children, Freniere wrote.
Ana Walshe's friends told the grand jury she was increasingly frustrated and the pair had recently had a "big argument" where she gave her husband an ultimatum. She was also having an affair with a coworker in Washington, D.C., and had admitted to having a crush on him to her husband.
During a Jan. 4, 2023 interview with police, Brian Walshe told officers his wife's messages sometimes showed up on his devices and he had access to her Instagram account. Brian Walshe's mother also suspected her son's wife was having an affair and hired a private investigator.
Walshe also searched the name of the man his wife was having an affair with numerous times on Instagram. On Dec. 27, 2022, Walshe searched "best state to divorce for a man."
The grand jury also heard evidence that Walshe was the beneficiary of several life insurance policies on his wife.
"From such evidence, the grand jury could infer that Brian knew about Ana's affair, thought their marriage was likely coming to an end, did not want to go to federal prison, and viewed her death as more beneficial to him than a divorce," Freniere wrote.
While Freniere acknowledged the evidence of prior planning was "not overwhelming," she found there was enough evidence before the grand jury to meet the standard of probable cause that Walshe "intended to kill Ana and that he decided to do so after a period of reflection."
Walshe has pleaded not guilty. His trial is scheduled for Oct. 20.
His lawyers filed a second motion to dismiss the case last week, claiming if prosecutors did not review evidence generated during the federal investigation of the Karen Read case , he could not get a fair trial.
Freniere has not ruled on that motion, but it may be moot given that prosecutors have now obtained permission from the federal government to go through the materials .
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