No New Trial For Convicted Peabody Murderer: Appeals Court

PEABODY, MA —The state's highest court upheld the conviction of a man who was found guilty in of the 2008 murder of his girlfriend in the Peabody apartment they shared.

Ashley Fernandes, 40, was sentenced to life in prison without parole following his 2012 conviction in the murder of Jessica Herrera, 25. Despite admitting to strangling Herrera on April 5, 2008, Fernandes appealed, saying he was not represented by counsel of his choice, the judge made errors in giving instructions to the jury and that his court-appointed lawyer did not introduce certain evidence.

On Monday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court shot down his appeal, ruling that a warrant obtained by the police to search the defendant's digital camera was valid because it was reasonable to believe there might be photographic evidence on the camera of the relationship of the defendant and the victim and the defendant's state of mind.

"Whereas each of the above claims lacks merit, and we discern no basis to grant extraordinary relief after plenary review of the record on appeal, we affirm the defendant's convictions and the orders denying each of his motions for post conviction relief," the court said in its ruling.

Fernandes and Herrera, a mother of two, shared an apartment together on Oak Street. At the time of her death, Herrera was scheduled to testify in a domestic abuse case against Fernandes. Without Herrera's testimony, Fernandes was found not guilty in that case.

In the 2012 murder trial, prosecutors argued the murder was premeditated in an effort by Fernandes to prevent Herrera from testifying. In his appeal, Fernandes reiterated earlier arguments that it was a passion crime committed in the heat of the moment.

Fernandes took photographs of Herrera during or just after the murder and later went to a Beverly restaurant where he sat at the bar and told another patron, Kenneth Morse, that his girlfriend was dead. Morse contacted police, who found Herrera's body in the apartment.

While defense attorneys tried to build a case showing infidelity, alcohol abuse and demands for money forced their client to attack her, prosecutors argued Fernandes knew exactly what he was doing when he strangled Herrera to death, wrapped her body in a blanket and placed it in a closet. At trial, they showed he had threatened to kill her before and talked with coworkers about how he might get away with the crime if he were home in India.

Dave Copeland covers Peabody and other North Shore communities for Patch. He can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).