Middlesex prosecutors dismiss 33-year-old murder charges
A man convicted nearly 33 years ago of the murder of a Cambridge man, and who was released from prison on an ankle bracelet seven years ago, had his case dismissed Friday in Middlesex Superior Court.
Prosecutors said it was virtually impossible for them to successfully retry the case against Michael J. Sullivan, who was found guilty in 1987 for the murder of 54-year-old Wilfred McGrath in an East Cambridge apartment.
“Given that nearly 33 years has passed since the murder, there has understandably been a diminishment of the health and memory of potential witnesses,’’ Middlesex District Attorney Marian T. Ryan said in a statement Friday. “Additionally, a number of the witnesses who testified at trial have died.’’
“ . . . the Commonwealth cannot meet its burden to prove the elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt,’’ Ryan added.
Friday’s dismissal concludes a long fight by Sullivan and his lawyers to clear him of the murder of McGrath, who was lured to an East Cambridge apartment and robbed of money, jewelry, and cocaine, before being left for dead behind an abandoned supermarket.
Sullivan was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison for the crime. But advanced DNA testing conducted later raised questions about his guilt. A Middlesex Superior Court judge in 2012 ruled the testing supported Sullivan’s claim that he was not involved in the murder, and granted him a new trial. Prosecutors appealed the ruling to the state Supreme Judicial Court, which upheld the judge’s ruling in 7-0 vote two years later.
In January 2013, after nearly 26 years behind bars, Sullivan was released from prison on the condition that he wear an electronic monitoring device and not leave Massachusetts.
Dana Curhan, a lawyer for Sullivan, said Friday that is client his relieved to be finally freed.
“He can now go to New Hampshire, or Rhode Island, or anywhere he wants. He can get a passport and go on vacation,’’ said Curhan, who noted the device once beeped when Sullivan was on a shopping trip with family in New Hampshire.
Curhan said the dismissal meant the case is no longer hanging over Sullivan’s head, but he still faces the daily struggle of attempting a return to everyday life after 26 years in prison.
That struggle included a brief return to jail in 2015 on drug charges in Billerica, according to the Lowell Sun.
Curhan confirmed the incident, but said Sullivan had unknowingly given a ride to a man who was involved in a drug transaction. The charges against him in that case were ultimately dismissed, Curhan said.
“He has work. He’s got a driver’s license. He’s got his own place,’’ Curhan said describing Sullivan’s life now. “And he’s starting to make the adjustments, but it’s a very hard thing to do after all that time.’’
