Massachusetts Criminal Defense Attorney Blog

This week the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued its opinion in the case of Commonwealth v. Nee. Nee was convicted of Conspiracy to Commit Murder in 2008 the Plymouth County Superior Court in Brockton, Massachusetts after a jury waived trial. He received a sentence of two and one half years in the house of correction with nine months to serve. A sentence as such typically results in a defendant serving four and one half months. The Court in its decision recited the following facts:

In September of 2004 Nee and two other Marshfield High School students (Farley and Sullivan) met with a police officer to inform her that another student had come up with a plan to blow up Marshfield High School. The meeting was arranged at Nee's suggestion. Nee and the others described the plot to the officer. As planned, they never acknowledged any involvement in the plan. Acting on this information police officers executed a Search Warrant at the home of Tobin Kerns where they found evidence of the plan. Kerns was tried and convicted. Farley and Sullivan testified at his trial under a grant of immunity. Their testimony implicated Nee. Both stated that the intent was to execute a Columbine-style assault on the school and specified targets. The plan was elaborate.

Nee's appeal argued insufficiency of the evidence to sustain a conviction for conspiracy to commit murder. In particular, the defendant suggested that he never intended to carry out the plan. Ruling against the defendant the Court held that to prove a conspiracy the prosecution need prove no more than an agreement with another with the intention to commit the act. There is no overt act requirement in Massachusetts. In addition, several witnesses testified about Nee's involvement in the plan itself, that he experimented with explosive devices and recruited others to join in the plot. Nee also argued that he renounced his intention to carry out the plan and that act constitutes a complete defense to the charges. The Court held that in order to avail oneself of that defense he must first acknowledge that he conspired to commit the crime. In this case Nee denied involvement in the crime. The Court left open this issue as to whether or not the defense of renunciation is a viable defense to conspiracy in Massachusetts.

Continue reading "Conviction For Columbine-Style Murder Plot Affirmed By Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court" »

David Marchant, a Boston Police Officer living in Dorchester, Massachusetts is facing charges of Domestic Assault and Battery. The alleged victim is his wife. Boston.com reports that Marchant was arrested over the weekend. Marchant's mother-in-law told officers that she witnessed Marchant slap his wife and push her. The mother-in-law tried to intercede. Marchant hit her too. She further stated that her she heard a slapping sound and then saw her daughter fall down some stairs. She then called 911. Marchant is on administrative duty at the police department while an investigation is conducted.

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Boston Domestic Assault and Battery Defense Lawyer

Here are some interesting Domestic Violence statistics reported by the American Bar Association. There are about 1.3 million women and two thirds as many men assaulted by an intimate partner in this country each year. About thirty three percent of female murder victims are killed by an intimate partner. 84% of spousal abuse victims are female. These figures are staggering and only slightly representative of the actual incidents of Domestic Violence that occur each year.

Naturally, prosecutors in Massachusetts take these cases quite seriously. All Massachusetts District Attorney's Offices have specially trained attorneys who prosecuted primarily Domestic Violence Cases. Additionally, Restraining Orders are often directly implicated in Domestic Violence prosecutions. This is why it is important that anyone charged with Domestic Assault and Battery in Massachusetts hire an Experienced Massachusetts Criminal Defense Lawyer. Without proper representation you risk a conviction or possible jail sentence.

Continue reading "Boston Police Officer Involved In Incident Of Domestic Violence Charged With Domestic Assault And Battery" »

This week, following a complaint from a Methuen, Massachusetts woman, Kenneth Poirier was arraigned in the Lawrence District Court on charges of Aggravated Rape and Kidnapping. He was previously charged with Indecent Assault and Battery, Assault and Battery and Kidnapping following another incident alleged to have occurred in October of this year. According to the complaining witness, on October 10, 2010 Poirier pulled her into his car and sexually attacked her at a remote location. As to the other case, it is alleged that on May 23, 2010 Poirier approached a woman pretending to need driving directions. When the woman approached to help out Poirier brandished a gun and demanded that the woman get in his car. He then drove off. He beat and raped her for about three hours. The woman escaped and was able to get the attention of patrolling police officers. She gave a description of Poirier who was arrested three days later. The woman refused medical treatment. These cases will probably be indicted to the Essex County Superior Court in Salem, Massachusetts.

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http://www.eagletribune.com/local/x1744209004/Second-Methuen-woman-accuses-man-of-attacks

While both of these cases might be defensible individually the prosecution might try to join both matters for trial. This will create an incredible difficult hurdle for the defense to jump. Massachusetts appellate courts have upheld the joinder of separate criminal accusations when two or more offenses are related, meaning that they are based on the same criminal conduct, course of criminal conduct or series of criminal episodes. It is up to the trial judge whether or not to permit joinder. Prior to permitting joinder the judge must decide whether joining the cases would deny the defendant of a fair trial. I can see some judges joining these cases and others requiring the district attorney to prosecute them separately. Most Aggressive Massachusetts Criminal Defense Lawyers will fight to sever these cases. The potential prejudice joinder presents is significant.

Continue reading "Kidnapping, Aggravated Rape, Related Sexual Assault Charges Issue In Lawrence Against Man Identified By Methuen Woman" »

Victor Hugo Gomez and Carolina Magana, both of East Boston, Massachusetts were arrested and charged with Sex Crimes in Lynn, Massachusetts. The Lynn Item reports that in September Lynn police detectives were made aware of a Prostitution ring in that city. They learned that prostitutes of Colombian decent were being delivered to clients in a specified minivan. Undercover officers called a number given to them by an informant and requested that a prostitute be delivered to them at a specific address. Within minutes a minivan fitting the informant's description arrived. It was being driven by Gomez. Magana was in the back seat. Police identified themselves and Magana told the police that she and Gomez worked together and split the profits. A search of the minivan resulted in the seizure of a bag of condoms, some lubricant and cash. It was also determined that Gomez was an Unlicensed Driver. Gomez has been charged with a Motor Vehicle Crime and Derving Support from a Prostitute. Magana has been charged with Sex For a Fee. The case is being prosecuted in the Lynn District Court.

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Massachusetts Sex For a Fee Defense Lawyer

Massachusetts Prostitution Defense Law Firm

Deriving Support from a Prostitute is a felony under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 272 Section 7. The law states that anyone convicted of this crime is subject to a five year prison sentence. Here, it is unlikely that Magana will testify against Gomez. Thus, the prosecution will have great difficulty securing a conviction. Massachusetts law states that driving a prostitute to particular location and either returning to pick her up or waiting for her does not amount to Pimping in Massachusetts. Absent some additional evidence the case against Gomez, if properly defended should be dismissed.

Continue reading "Boston Prostitute, Pimp Arrested And Charged With Sex Crimes In Lynn" »

Seventeen year old Nigel Rowe of Westborough, Massachusetts has been charged with Rape. According to reports in the Metrowest Daily News and Wicked Local, Westborough, Rowe was arraigned today in the Westborough District Court. Bail was set at one thousand dollars. Rowe is permitted to remain attend school but is otherwise confined to his home. He is being monitored by a GPS device pending his pre-trial. Rowe was arrested Friday night by local police. It is reported that Rowe and the girl know each other.

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http://www.wickedlocal.com/westborough/newsnow/x1389367986/Westborough-high-football-player-pleads-not-guilty-to-rape-charges

Westborough, Massachusetts Rape Defense Lawyer

Stories like this one always concern me. The accused is being charged with one of the most heinous acts, punishable be life in prison. Yet his bail is set at one thousand dollars and he can attend school. That suggests to me that the underlying facts are much less egregious than the charges suggest. Apparently the girl made her complaint last Thursday. The police conducted a one day investigation before making their arrest. As I have mentioned in prior blog posts, there are many defenses to Rape allegations. In cases where the act never occurred denial is a common defense. Where there was sexual contact but no rape then consent is typically offered as a defense. Many factors are taken into account by judges or juries in determining guilty or innocence in these cases. Where did the act occur? At what time? What condition was the complaining witness in at the time of the report? What did witnesses see or hear? What did the complaining witness tell her friends or family, if anything. What did the defendant say before or after his arrest. Rowe's Massachusetts Criminal Defense Lawyer will be looking into all of these issues immediately as he or she establishes the defense to this case. However, while this case is pending it is important to keep in mind that these charges are allegations only and Rowe enjoys a constitutional presumption of innocence.

Continue reading "Westborough Massachusetts Teen Charged With Rape" »

Dwayne Day of Braintree and his brother Michael Day of Boston, have been charged in the Quincy, Massachusetts District Court with Drug Conspiracy, School Zone Violation, Trafficking Cocaine, a Class B Substance, Possession of Ammunition and Gun Possession. According to reports, police in Braintree, Massachusetts had been conducting an extensive drug investigation in the area of McCusker Drive. This past Wednesday a Braintree Police detective observed the Day brothers in a car in a parking lot of an apartment complex. Once the Days noticed the detective they fled the area. Another officer stopped the car claiming it had "failed to signal", a civil Motor Vehicle Violation. The Days were detained until a patrol officer with a drug sniffing dog was summonsed to the scene. The dog alerted the officers to drugs in the car's center console where over fourteen grams of cocaine were found. Officers then applied for and obtained a search warrant for one of the brother's homes on McCusker Drive. Inside the home the police found more cocaine and two guns. Bail has been set of fifteen thousand dollars cash.

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http://www.patriotledger.com/news/cops_and_courts/x171129091/Braintree-bust-nets-two-on-drug-and-gun-charges

Braintree, Massachusetts Drug Defense Lawyer, Norfolk County Cocaine Trafficking Defense Lawyer

Once again, as with many drug cases the legality of the Search and Seizure becomes critical to the Day brothers' defenses. While the officers can justify their stop of Day if in fact he did fail to signal they cannot justify holding them longer than is necessary to issue a citation. Massachusetts Courts have held that an investigative detention must be temporary and must last no longer than necessary to effectuate the purpose of the stop. The continued detention of a motor vehicle operator and passenger after the operator had satisfied the purpose of the stop for speeding by producing his license and registration was ruled unlawful by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Similarly, a forty-minute detention of defendant's vehicle by six troopers who blocked the front and back of the vehicle with their cruisers was inconsistent with an investigative stop and constituted an arrest. In this case, it is unclear why the police called for the drug sniffing dog and why the Day brothers were held longer than was necessary to issue the ticket. No doubt the Day's lawyers will file a Motion to Suppress. If successful the case would likely be dismissed.

Continue reading "Braintree, Boston Men Facing Cocaine Trafficking, Gun Charges In Norfolk County" »

Quincy, Massachusetts residents noticed what they believed to be drug activity in their neighborhood. It was their belief that a man was selling drugs out of his minivan. In response Quincy Drug Detectives were notified. The police then watched the neighborhood. When they saw what appeared to be drug deals involving the minivan officers stopped two suspected "buyers". Both were found in Possession of Heroin both admitted to purchasing the heroin from Jose Soto, the driver of the minivan. Soto, who is from Everett, Massachusetts was then arrested and charged with Distribution of Heroin, Conspiracy to Violate the Drug Laws and a School Zone Violation. The buyers will be charged with Possession of Heroin. The cases will be prosecuted in the Quincy District Court.

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http://www.patriotledger.com/news/cops_and_courts/x1314921704/Police-bust-alleged-Everett-Quincy-heroin-connection

Everett, Massachusetts Drug Crimes Defense Lawyer

Every year our office defends countless people in Soto's shoes. Assuming the evidence is no more than reported the district attorney's will have a difficult time prosecuting the case against Soto. Here is why. The "buyers" were not working for or with the police. Presumably they are heroin users purchasing enough of the drug to get high and satisfy their urges. Their use and possession of the drug constitutes a crime. Whether they get charged or not they will be represented by lawyers who in all likelihood will recommend that they not testify for the police. Doing so compromises their cases. Thus, as to Soto the police will be left only with their observations which will not be sufficient to sustain their prosecution and secure a conviction. My guess is that the case against Soto will be dismissed at some point.

Continue reading "Everett Man Charged With Heroin Distribution, Drug Conspiracy In Quincy" »

Alden Dow of Methuen, Massachusetts has been charged with Indecent Exposure and Disorderly Conduct. The Lawrence Eagle Tribune reports that Dow was urinating on the tire and bumper of a truck outside of a Methuen restaurant. The car owner, a woman, contacted police who responded to find Dow in an intoxicated state. Dow denied committing the act. Dow's keys were found in his car. A criminal background check showed that his license had been suspended. Charges were filed. The case in pending in the Lawrence District Court.

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http://www.eagletribune.com/local/x583214285/Man-charged-with-indecent-exposure

Indecent Exposure Defense Lawyers in Massachusetts

From the perspective of a Massachusetts Criminal Defense Lawyer Dow did not commit the crime of Indecent Exposure. To convict the accused of the offense of Indecent Exposure in Massachusetts the district attorney must prove the Dow engaged in "an intentional act of lewd exposure, offensive to one or more persons". Lewd conduct has been defined as "the commission of conduct in a public place, or the public solicitation of conduct to be performed in a public place, when the conduct committed or solicited involves the touching of the genitals, buttocks, or female breasts, for purposes of sexual arousal, gratification, or offense, by a person who knows or should know of the presence of a person or persons who may be offended by the conduct." The act of urinating on someone's truck tires does not satisfy this statute.

Continue reading "Methuen Man Charged With Indecent Exposure After Urinating On Pick-Up Truck" »

Abdul Kareem Balogun of Revere, Massachusetts has been charged with Rape and Indecent Assault and Battery on a Retarded Person in Suffolk County. It has been reported that Balogun was a care taker for adults with mental health issues. He worked for a local medical assistance organization. One of the patients complained to a case worker about sexual assaults including demands for oral sex. The caseworker contacted the police. Their investigation disclosed that the victim had suffered abuse over ten times since Balogun began working for the organization in April of this year. The case is currently pending in the Chelsea District Court. The prosecution of this case will likely be handled in the Suffolk County Superior Court.

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Rape Charges For Massachusetts Man Working At Health Care Facility Filed

Indecent Assault and Battery on a Mentally Retarded Person, Massachusetts

To be convicted of Indecent Assault and Battery on a Mentaly Retarded Person in Massachusetts the prosecution must prove that the defendant 1) committed an indecent assault and battery, 2) on a person with an intellectual disability and 3) that the defendant knew that the individual had the disability. If convicted of this crime there is a potential ten year state prison sentence and a five year sentence must be imposed. The five year sentence is not a minimum mandatory sentence so there can be some creativity with a plea bargain or through judicial discretion. Massachusetts courts have held that the prosecution succeeded in proving a victim' s intellectual disability by through evidence that the person lived in a home for mentally retarded people, thus eliminating the need for expert testimony on that subject.

Continue reading "Revere, Massachusetts Man Charged With Rape Of A Mentally Challenged Person" »

About a month ago David Avery, a former Danvers, Massachusetts resident now living in Tewksbury received an errant text from a fourteen girl. Avery, who is thirty one years old and the girl texted each other for several weeks. The two eventually agreed to meet behind a store in Salem, Massachusetts. They engaged in various sex acts. Afterwards they went into the store to get a drink. Concerned about getting pregnant, the girl confided to a friend about the incident. She then told her mother who in turn took her to the Salem, Massachusetts police station. A surveillance video at the store partially corroborated the girl's story. Avery has now been charged with two counts of Statutory Rape in the Salem, Massachusetts District Court. This case will most likely be prosecuted in the Essex County Superior Court.

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http://www.eagletribune.com/local/x677780042/Police-Mistaken-text-message-leads-to-rape-of-14-year-old

Massachusetts Statutory Rape Defense Attorney

Statutory Rape in Massachusetts is a felony pursuant to M.G.L. ch. 265 s 23. It makes no difference that the defendant did not know the victim's age at the time of the act. The prosecution has to prove only two elements to sustain a conviction for Statutory Rape in Massachusetts. 1) That the defendant had sexual intercourse or unnatural sexual intercourse, with 2) a child under sixteen years of age. Moreover, it has long been the law in Massachusetts that it is no defense that the defendant did not know that the victim was under the statutory age of consent. It is also immaterial that the defendant reasonably believed that the victim was sixteen years of age or older or that he may have attempted to ascertain her age. Thus, the only defense to this case is that the acts for which the accused stands charged never occurred.

Continue reading "Former Danvers Resident Charged With Statutory Rape" »

This past weekend, members of a local Drug Task Force made arrests and charged two teens and their friend with various Drug Crimes. Krista Connolly, 18 of Bridgewater is facing a Drug Conspiracy charge. Ryan McHugh 22 of East Bridgewater has been charged with Trafficking Over 14 Grams of Percocet, a Class B Substance, Distribution of Percocet and Conspiracy and William Cobbett, 19 of Bridgewater has been charged with Trafficking Class B and Conspiracy. After a month long investigation detectives executed a search warrant at McHugh's home on Washington Street. Cobbett was stopped when he arrived by car at McHugh's home. About one hundred fifty Percocet pills were found in his car. In total the police seized around two hundred Percocet tablets. Right now the cases are being prosecuted in the Brockton District Court. The prosecution can indict the defendants on these charges and prosecute the cases in the Plymouth County Superior Court.

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http://www.enterprisenews.com/news/cops_and_courts/x187208159/Three-face-drug-charges-after-Percocet-bust-in-East-Bridgewater

Bridgewater, Massachusetts Drug Trafficking Lawyer

The case against Connolly appears to be the weakest from a prosecution perspective. Her involvement is not detailed in this article. If she was simply in Cobbett's car without any active involvement in the drug possession or trafficking activities the case against her, if properly defended by an Experienced Massachusetts Criminal Defense Lawyer might get dismissed. The case against McHugh depends on several factors. Who else lived in his home, where the pills were found, what evidence if any links McHugh to the pills and of course the legality of the Massachusetts Search Warrant. Cobbett too might avail himself of certain defenses depending on where the drugs in his car were located and what grounds the detectives had for stopping him and searching his car.

Continue reading "Bridgewater Massachusetts Teens Charged With Trafficking Class B Drugs After Cops Raid Home" »