The trial of Brian Walshe begins Monday with opening statements. He’s facing a charge of first degree murder in the death of his wife Anna nearly three years ago in Cohasset, Massachusetts.
Both sides will present their statements at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham.
You can watch the trial live on CBS News Boston when it begins by clicking on the embedded video player in this article.
A jury of 16 people was seated on November 20. Judge Diane Freniere said she expects the trial to last three to four weeks.
There had been some question if the case would ever reach trial. On the first day of jury selection, Walshe pleaded guilty to two lesser charges of disposing his wife’s body and misleading police. No plea deal has been reached on the final charge, allowing the trial to start as planned.
Ana Walshe had three children with Brian Walshe. She was last seen alive on Jan. 1, 2023. Her body was never found. The couple hosted a New Year’s Eve dinner at their home in Cohasset with friends that night. Brian Walshe told police that his wife left early in the morning to get a ride to the airport to deal with a work emergency in Washington, D.C. Investigators said there’s no evidence that she ever got a ride or boarded a plane.
During the final pretrial hearing in the case, prosecutors said they have “binders” of materials that were retrieved from Walshe’s laptop and his son’s iPad. They allegedly include Google searches that included “How long before a body starts to smell?” and “Can you be charged with murder without a body?”
“What I think people need to understand is that the jury is never going to know that Brian Walshe plead guilty to improperly disposing of a body and the obstruction of justice charge. The only way that they would find out about this potentially is if Brian Walshe was to testify, which he does not need to do,” said WBZ-TV legal analyst Jennifer Roman.
Walshe will be allowed to remove his handcuffs during the trial so he can actively participate in his defense.
If convicted of first-degree murder, Walshe faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.
