DEDHAM, MASS. (WHDH) - Brian Walshe’s defense team rested their case Thursday morning without calling any witnesses in the 50-year-old’s murder trial. Walshe, of Cohasset, is charged with murdering his wife Ana Walshe in January 2023.
Before the jury was called into court, Judge Diana Freniere asked the defense if Walshe planned to take the stand. Defense attorney Larry Tipton told the judge he would not.
The defense also said they had no plan to call any witnesses.
7NEWS legal analyst Tom Hoopes said that decision could prove to be problematic.
“Clearly the defense, by telling the judge yesterday he was gonna testify, something happened, there’s been a change of plans,” said Hoopes. “Murder cases are tough, clients in murder cases are tough. They clearly had to make a last minute decision. Now they’ll have to dealt with the fall out of that.”
Hoopes said it is the Commonwealth’s job to prove Walshe murdered his wife. He said while the defense claims Ana died of a “sudden unexplained death,” jurors don’t have to buy that theory.
“Juries like to ask questions, like what happened here, and they need to get that from somebody,” said Hoopes. “I think they’d have a lot more confidence…if there was some evidence, either credible evidence from the defendant himself, or credible evidence from some expert.”
Judge Freniere ruled on the prosecution’s motion to not allow jurors to hear that Walshe pleaded guilty to lying to police about his wife’s disappearance and moving her body. She said it is irrelevant to whether Walshe actually committed murder.
“As long as we’re able to argue that a possible manner of death was sudden unexpected death, I understand the government is going to stand up and say, ‘nonsense’ and we’re gonna say, ‘homicide nonsense,’” said Tipton.
The prosecution rested its case on Wednesday after spending eight days calling 48 witnesses, showing security camera video of Walshe buying tools and cleaning supplies, and photos of Ana’s belongings found at a trash site.
Gem Mutlu, the man who spent New Year’s Eve with the Walshe’s, was the last of the prosecution’s witnesses to testify. Mutlu was one of the last people to see Ana Walshe alive.
“Another chapter of the book has closed,” Freniere said. “All the evidence in the case has now been presented to you. I remind you at this time jurors, and I reminded you at the close of yesterday, the defense has no burden in this case, no burden to produce any evidence at all. That’s because, as you are all very well aware at this point, the burden lies with the Commonwealth to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Closing statements are set for Friday.
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