D.A. Rollins Files Assent to Motion for a New Trial for Sean Ellis,
Provides Next Step Toward Justice After Wrongful Conviction
Sean Ellis and His Attorneys React to the Filing in Press Conference;
Ellis Served 22 Years in Prison for a Crime He Did Not Commit
WHAT: The Law Offices of Rosemary Scapicchio, the New England Innocence Project, and the CPCS Innocence Program hosted a virtual press conference TODAY, March 17, at 1:00 p.m. in response to District Attorney Rachael Rollins filing in Court today assenting to the motion for a new trial for the remaining gun convictions for Sean Ellis of Boston, a long-awaited step toward justice for Ellis.
On December 9, 2020, Sean Ellis and his attorneys, Rosemary Scapicchio and Jillise McDonough, filed a motion for new trial to overturn the gun convictions remaining on his record from his wrongful conviction for the 1993 murder of Boston Police Detective John Mulligan, which was overturned in 2015 after Ellis spent more than 21 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Ellis is currently a member of the Board of Trustees at the New England Innocence Project and is the subject of the Netflix docuseries, Trial 4.
In DA Rollins filing, she stated (among other things) that "[c]orruption at the root tainted every branch of the investigation into Detective Mulligan's murder, including the gun possession charges." The District Attorney said that if the Court allows the motion for new trial, her office will file a nolle prosequi, ending the prosecution of the case.
Media Coverage
GBH: “DA Rachael Rollins Endorses New Trial To Vacate Sean Ellis' Gun Conviction”
GBH, Greater Boston: “Suffolk D.A. Rachael Rollins On Moving To Drop Sean Ellis’ Final Gun Charge”
Boston Globe: “Suffolk DA Rollins files motion to end the long-running prosecution of Sean Ellis”
WBUR: “Rollins Seeks To Erase Sean Ellis' Firearm Convictions”
WHDH: “Suffolk DA Rollins files motion to end decades-old case against Sean Ellis”
About the Law Offices of Rosemary C. Scapicchio
Rosemary Curran Scapicchio is an experienced criminal defense attorney based in Boston. The important work she does on behalf of her many criminal law clients is based on one belief: that the serious charges against her clients require dedication and aggressive advocacy to win their freedom and reunite them with their families. She has successfully defended many clients nationwide in recent years. Her dedication to giving aggressive advocacy in every case is evident in the number of not-guilty verdicts she is able to secure for her clients.
About the New England Innocence Project
The New England Innocence Project (NEIP) is an independent social justice non-profit committed to correcting and preventing wrongful convictions and fighting against injustice within the criminal legal system for innocent people imprisoned for a crime they did not commit in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Our team provides free forensic testing, investigation, experts, and an experienced legal team to exonerate the innocent and bring them home to their loved ones. We provide exoneree support as they work to rebuild their lives in freedom through the peer-led Exoneree Network. We also use our expertise about wrongful convictions to provide education and advocate for legislative and judicial reforms to prevent future tragedies. For more information, visit NewEnglandInnocence.org.
About CPCS Innocence Program
The CPCS Innocence Program is a unit within the Private Counsel Division of CPCS that is responsible for identifying, litigating, and overseeing counsel assignments in all post-conviction cases in which an indigent Massachusetts defendant asserts factual innocence of the underlying crime and/or seeks post-conviction forensic analysis to support a claim of factual innocence. The Innocence Program aims to identify and fight to overturn wrongful convictions across the state of Massachusetts. Staff and panel attorneys represent indigent state defendants who have been convicted and punished for crimes they did not commit. The program accepts both DNA and non-DNA based innocence claims, with special attention to cases involving eyewitness identification, flawed or invalidated forensic science, false confessions, and police and prosecutorial misconduct.