born March 11, 1731, Boston, Mass.
died May 11, 1814, Boston, Mass., U.S.
U.S. jurist.
A lawyer in his native Boston from 1757, he gained recognition as a prosecuting attorney in the murder trial of the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre . He was a member of the Continental Congress and a signer of the Declaration of Independence . He also served as Massachusetts' first attorney general (177790) and as a judge in the state supreme court (17901804).