The Disappearance of Dr. Parkman: Blood & Ivy at the Harvard Medical School
Dennis J. Curran
April 28, 2022
7:30pm Zoom Talk
The legal case of Commonwealth v. John Webster involves the murder of one Harvard Medical School Professor and physician by another. Few, if any, cases have produced the number of fundamental legal principles used throughout our nation today than this Massachusetts 19th century murder trial. A murder without a body, forensic dental testimony, handwriting experts, the difference between murder and manslaughter, and circumstantial evidence were all highlighted. Perhaps the greatest contribution to the law was the formulation of a reasonable doubt jury instruction that has been used, often verbatim, in every criminal trial in Massachusetts for over 150 years. This presentation will address the compelling and intriguing facts behind this landmark decision on so many issues in criminal jurisprudence
Justice Curran served on the Massachusetts Superior Court 2006-2018, and the MA District Court and the Boston Municipal Court Departments, 2003-2006. He taught at Brown University, Tufts University and the Roger Williams University School of Law. In addition, he has been a guest speaker at more than 100 educational seminars, including MA Continuing Education, The Lincoln Forum Symposium, The Flaschner Judicial Institute, North Hill, Fox Hill Village and Wellesley-Weston Lifetime Learning Program. His awards and honors include Chief Justice Edward F. Hennessey Award, MA Bar Association, President’s Award for Judicial Excellence, MA Academy of Trial Attorneys, Citizen of the Year, MA Boys’ and Girls’ State, and more. He received a BA and a MA Magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Juris
Doctor, University of Virginia School of Law.
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