In a recent decision, Charbonneau v. Presiding Justice of the Holyoke Division of the District Court Department, the Supreme Judicial Court vacated “a standing order of the Holyoke Division of the District Court Department … prohibiting the tender of a so-called ‘defendant-capped’ plea on the day of trial.” The SJC reasoned…
In a recent case, Doe, Sex Offender Registry Board No. 380316 v. Sex Offender Registry Board, the Supreme Judicial Court changed the standard of proof applicable to classification determinations by the Sex Offender Registry Board (SORB), discarding the existing “preponderance of the evidence” standard in favor of the more stringent…
The Appeals Court recently issued a new decision, Commonwealth v. Everett, which clarifies the trial court’s ability to dismiss a valid criminal complaint. In Everett, a Boston Municipal Court judge dismissed a legally valid criminal complaint against the defendant, which charged him with operating a motor vehicle after his license…
According to an article in the MetroWest Daily News, a Framingham District Court judge ordered a Rhode Island man held without bail in relation to several sexual assault charges. The article states that the man is accused of sexually assaulting and raping the alleged victim over a period of years,…
In Commonwealth v. Mulgrave, the Supreme Judicial Court held for the first time that a text message could constitute an excited utterance under Massachusetts law. An excited utterance is an exception to the rule prohibiting the admission of hearsay. A statement qualifies as an excited utterance if it: (1) follows…
Under Massachusetts G. L. c. 123A, § 12, if the Commonwealth has reason to believe a person convicted of a sex offense is likely to re-offend, it may file a petition in the Superior Court alleging the person is a “sexually dangerous person,” and request that the person be civilly committed.…
In August of 2014, the Massachusetts state legislature passed An Act Relative to Domestic Violence, which was signed into law by then Governor Deval Patrick shortly thereafter. The Act made various changes to the state’s domestic violence laws. Among other modifications, the Act created a first offense domestic violence assault…
During the process of a criminal case, the trial court judge makes a number of different rulings, all of which may be appealed by a defendant. There are several different types of appeals. The most common type of appeal is a direct appeal, which is an appeal to the Appeals…
Last week, the Supreme Judicial Court issued a decision – Commonwealth v. Camblin – that calls the admissibility of breath test evidence into question in operating under the influence cases. The facts of the case are as follows: Camblin pulled over in the breakdown lane on Route 495 to urinate. A…
This past week, the Supreme Judicial Court rule that people who pled guilty in cases where evidence was mishandled by former state chemist Annie Dookhan may not be charged with more serious crimes if given a new trial and, if convicted, may not be given a worse sentence than the…