Under Massachusetts law, a person convicted of second-degree murder may be committed in “the heat of the moment” and with the intent to kill the victim, but prior to that moment, the killer had no intent to commit murder, or when a death occurs while perpetrating another felony.Īccording to trial affidavit on file with the Worcester Superior Court, investigators alleged Enright has a fascination with blood, bones and death, and private writings and texts from Enright both to Chicklis and her boyfriend showed an element of pre-planning Chicklis’s murder. Second-degree murder, which is what Enright was ultimately found guilty of, is when a murder is intentional, and with malice aforethought, but done without premeditation. First-degree murder is defined as both willful and premeditated. The key distinction between first- and second-degree murder is premeditation or planning. Prosecutors sought a charge of first-degree murder for Enright. Eventually, she admitted to stabbing Chicklis, but claimed she did so in self-defense after he sexually assaulted her.
Later, she admitted she and Chicklis had met on June 23 and drank alcohol and smoked marijuana together in her vehicle, but he had left to purchase narcotics and had not returned. His body was discovered by a jogger in a wooded area off of Route 119 July 10, only about six miles from Enright's home.Ĭhicklis and Enright were once classmates at the Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School, and had at one time dated, but were not together at the time of the murder.Įnright initially told police she and Chicklis intended to meet that day, but he never showed up. Five days later, his car was discovered in the parking lot of the Hannaford supermarket on Route 202 in Rindge. Police say Enright and her boyfriend then wrapped Chicklis’s body in a blanket and covered with trash bags and duct tape and disposed of it in a wooded area on the side of Route 119 in Rindge.Ĭhicklis was first reported missing on June 24, the day after police believe he was murdered. Justice was served,” Early said.Įnright is expected back in court in January for sentencing.Įnright, 24, was accused of stabbing Chicklis, 20, of Westminster, after luring him to a treehouse outside of her home in Ashburnham, Mass., on the night of June 23, 2018. Can't be unhappy with a mandatory life sentence with the possibility of parole. Over 200 pieces of evidence, they took their time with it, but we're happy with the decision. “You're always hoping for a first-degree the evidence was what it is, but you have to respect the juror's decision. In a interview video recorded by the Worcester Telegram outside of the courthouse Monday, Worcester District Attorney Joe Early said the his office was “as pleased as we can be with the outcome of the case, and thank the jurors for their service.”Įarly’s office was seeking a first-degree murder conviction. The jury delivered its verdict Monday morning. 24 before picking up again on Monday following the Thanksgiving holiday.
23, and continued those deliberations all day Nov. A Worcester Superior Court jury found Julia Enright guilty of second-degree murder in the 2018 death of her ex-boyfriend, Brandon Chicklis.Īfter 11 days of trial, jurors began deliberations Nov.