Former Prosecutor Yannetti Revisits “The Ride”
PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Erin Francoeur
Phone: (617) 338-6006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
9 A.M. EDT, September 8, 2009
Boston, MA, September 8, 2009 — Attorney David Yannetti revisited the courtroom where he had prosecuted the murderers of 10-year old Jeffrey Curley in Commonwealth v. Sicari, Middlesex County Superior Court No. 1997-2318 as The Ride, a book detailing the brutal case, was released. Attorney Yannetti, the prosecutor hand-picked to handle the case by the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, prepared a fierce and water-tight case, resulting in convictions for both individuals indicted for the murder.
The book, written by Boston Globe reporter Brian MacQuarrie, details the investigation and trial in Cambridge, Massachusetts, including the pressure on Attorney Yannetti to secure a first-degree murder conviction. Further, it describes the devastation caused by the boy’s loss to his family and the unexpected developments following the trial’s end.
As MacQuarrie describes in The Ride, Attorney Yannetti’s presentation of the Curley murder painted a stark picture for jurors and sealed this moving case for the Commonwealth.
“The Curley case was one of the most emotional experiences of my career. I will not forget that shocking crime or the heart-break endured by the Curley family and their community.” Attorney Yannetti commented from his Boston office this morning. “Preparing for the Curley trial was heart-wrenching, and its one of those instances where I was so glad to see justice served.”
Now a distinguished criminal defense attorney, David Yannetti has maintained a highly regarded law practice in Boston since 1999. In his twenty-year career, Attorney Yannetti has tried hundreds of criminal cases, including ten other high-profile murder cases.
One recent murder case defended by Attorney Yannetti was Commonwealth v. Roland Douglas Phinney, Jr., Middlesex County Superior Court No. 89-2234. Prosecuted by Attorney Yannetti’s old office, the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, Mr. Phinney was convicted of first-degree murder in 1990. Over a decade later, after leaving the D.A.’s office, Criminal Defense Attorney Yannetti investigated the Phinney case and discovered that his trial counsel had failed to properly present evidence to the jury about a third party suspect. Attorney Yannetti thereafter persuaded both a Superior Court judge and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to grant Mr. Phinney a new trial – and to release him from state prison after he had unjustly served 16 years. In March of 2008, Attorney Yannetti won re-trial against his old office, persuading a jury to return a verdict of Not Guilty on the first-degree murder indictment. Mr. Phinney is now a free man as a result.
