State's Highest Court Upholds Weymouth Rape and Murder Charges

BOSTON, MA — The state's highest court will not give a new trial to a man convicted of breaking into his grandmother's house in Weymouth before raping and killing his 6-year-old cousin.

Ryan Bois was convicted of first-degree murder, rape, and armed home invasion in 2009 but argued during the trial that he was not guilty by reason of insanity. During his appeal, he asserted the following justifications for a new trial:

• His counsel was ineffective for failing to present certain evidence relevant to his insanity defense and to object to the jury charge on the insanity defense.
• The judge did not respond adequately to reports that a juror slept through certain portions of the trial.
• The evidence was insufficient on an element of the home invasion charge, and the judge incorrectly instructed the jury on that element.
• The instructions on felony-murder impermissibly removed from the jury's consideration one of its elements.
• The prosecutor's closing argument was improper.

Bois also asked for his first-degree murder conviction to be reduced to second degree murder because of his mental illness.

"We affirm the conviction of murder in the first degree, and decline to exercise our power to reduce the degree of guilt or to order a new trial. With respect to the charge of home invasion, we agree with the defendant that the evidence was insufficient, and that his conviction must be reversed," the ruling read.

On Aug. 4, 2007, Bois, who was 20 at the time, broke into his grandmother's home and raped and strangled his six-year-old cousin, who was sleeping over.

Click here to read the full ruling.

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