Brian Walshe ruled competent to stand trial in Massachusetts murder case
Brian Walshe, the Cohasset, Massachusetts man accused of killing his wife Ana and dismembering her body, is competent to stand trial, a Norfolk Superior Court judge ruled on Friday.
Last month, Judge Diane Freniere ordered Walshe to be hospitalized at Bridgewater State Hospital to determine his competency. She said Friday that after Walshe's 40-day stay at the hospital, a report from a doctor there "concludes the defendant is competent and ready to stand trial."
Freniere also denied motions from the defense to either move the trial outside of Norfolk County or bring in jurors from outside the area. She said the media coverage of his case has been extensive and "somewhat graphic," but it's also been "primarily factual."
"While the defendant has demonstrated that the national and local media have extensively covered his case, he has not demonstrated the quote 'type of emotionally charged, inflammatory, sensationalistic coverage needed to support a presumption of prejudice,'" she said.
Walshe walked into the Dedham courthouse on Friday wearing handcuffs. Jury selection in his trial will start next week on Tuesday after a pre-trial hearing on Monday, and opening statements could happen on Dec. 1, the judge said. The trial is expected to last three or four weeks.
The Ana Walshe case
Ana Walshe, 39, was last seen early on the morning of Jan. 1, 2023, after the couple hosted a friend at their Cohasset home for a New Year's Eve dinner.
Brian Walshe told police that she left the house early in the morning to get a ride to the airport and fly to Washington, D.C. for a work emergency, but there's no record of her being picked up by a car or boarding a plane.
Investigators allege that Brian Walshe made gruesome internet searches on his son's iPad around the time of her disappearance, including "10 ways to dispose of a dead body if you really need to." Prosecutors also say surveillance video from Home Depot in Rockland shows him buying large amounts of cleaning supplies including mops, a bucket, tarps and drop cloths.
Walshe was arrested after detectives found blood as well as a bloody and damaged knife in the basement of their home. Her body has not been found.
Brian Walshe defense
Brian Walshe has suffered from fear and anxiety since he was stabbed in jail in September, his lawyers previously said.
"The defendant is not functioning at the level he was functioning prior to the violent assault and importantly, not functioning in a manner required of any defendant facing a complex trial," the defense wrote in a filing.
Walshe's lawyers have argued that the government obtained the alleged Google searches illegally. They've also sought texts and emails from former Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor, the lead investigator who was fired for his handling of the Karen Read case.
Walshe was sentenced last year to three years in prison in a separate case after pleading guilty to art fraud charges.