Crime

Court rules Brian Walshe is competent to stand trial, denies move of venue

The judge expects the trial to start on Dec. 1, the Monday after Thanksgiving.

Brian Walshe, in court on Dec. 2, 2024. Greg Derr via AP, Pool

updated on November 14, 2025

1 minute to read

A Bridgewater State Hospital doctor has deemed Brian Walshe competent to stand trial for allegedly killing his wife, Ana, on New Year’s Day in 2023.

On Friday, Norfolk Superior Court Judge Diane Freniere also rejected a defense request to move the trial, ruling that while Walshe showed there was “wide national and local media coverage” of the case, he did not demonstrate the “type of emotionally charged, inflammatory, sensationalistic coverage needed to support a presumption of prejudice.”

Freniere added that the court will consider any concerns about the impartiality of prospective jurors from Norfolk County arising from pretrial publicity.

Walshe’s attorney, Larry Tipton, said he opposed the court’s ruling.

Ana Walshe, a Cohasset mother of three, went missing around New Year’s Day in 2023. Prosecutors allege her husband, Brian Walshe, killed and dismembered her before disposing of her remains.

They cite evidence that he searched online for information about dead bodies and bought a hacksaw, hatchet, and cleaning supplies shortly after her disappearance. Police have never found Ana Walshe’s body.

Walshe has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, misleading police, and improper conveyance of a human body.

He returned to court on Friday for the first time since an inmate reportedly stabbed him in jail on Sept. 11. He appeared polished, wearing a black suit and tie.

The court initially set a competency hearing for Oct. 27. But his lawyer, Tipton, previously said that despite showing progress since the attack, the “mental and physical effects of the violent assault” continued to prevent Walshe from fully participating in preparing his defense.

Freneire acknowledged that there will be a period of transition when Walshe returns to jail following 40 days at Bridgewater State Hospital.

She asked Walshe’s lawyers to alert her if any concerns arise.

Freneire continued the hearing to Monday, Nov. 17, with jury selection to begin the day after. She expects the trial to start on Dec. 1, the Monday after Thanksgiving.

Freniere, at a conference review on Oct. 31, said she hoped to wrap up the case by Christmas.