The latest appeal by Nathan Fujita was denied by the state’s highest court Thursday. The Supreme Judicial Court upheld his first-degree murder conviction due to his “purposeful conduct.”
Fujita lured Lauren Astley to his parent’s Wayland home on July 3, 2011, where he murdered the recent Wayland High School graduate. , who was 18, was strangled by her ex-boyfriend who subsequently slit her throat and dumped her body in a marsh.
The unanimous ruling decided that Fujita’s action were “those of a rational mind,” written by Justice Serge Georges Jr.
“The overwhelming evidence of the defendant’s purposeful and controlled actions before, during, and after the killing demonstrated that he appreciated the criminality or wrongfulness of his conduct and retained the ability to conform his behavior to the law,” Georges wrote. “Not every defendant with a mental illness lacks criminal responsibility for his or her acts.”
Fujita was found guilty of first-degree premeditated murder with extreme atrocity or cruelty and sentenced to life in prison without parole in 2013. But in 2024 Massachusetts law was changed which could reduce Fujita’s sentence. The court raised the minimum age to be sentenced to life in prison without parole to 21; therefore, anyone sentenced to life without parole under that age is now eligible for a chance at parole if the crime was committed before July 25, 2014. Since Fujita was 18 at the time of the murder he will be able to seek parole after serving 15 years in prison.
In January 2025, prosecutors asked the SJC to uphold the Middlesex District Court judge’s denial of a retrial.
Fujita’s lawyers said that psychiatric issues such as schizophrenia were not known at the time of the original trial and only appeared after his incarceration. However, the Middlesex District Attorney’s office said Fujita admitted to faking behaviors that would indicate mental illness and admitted that his “non-responsive behavior” at a prison psychiatric facility in New Hampshire was a “conscious choice.”
Assistant District Attorney Ryan Rall responded to the appeal in a 180-page document stating that the Middlesex District judge had, in fact, considered the evidence presented by both expert witnesses brought in to testify about Fujita’s mental state and schizophrenia.
In response to their tragic loss, Astley’s parents, Malcolm Astley and Mary Dunne, created the Lauren Dunne Astley Memorial Fund in 2013 to promote educational programs on healthy teen relationships, the arts, and community service. The fund supports programs presented to students beginning in fifth grade, initially focusing on healthy friendships and progressively addressing dating violence throughout high school.
A mural honoring Lauren on an exterior wall of the Wayland High School courtyard was created by her friends in her memory.
