According to an article in the MetroWest Daily News, a Framingham man allegedly attacked his ex-girlfriend after he found out that she was dating someone new. The article states that the man and the alleged victim were romantically involved but that the relationship had ended. According to the article, the…
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…
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…
According to an article in the MetroWest Daily News, a Framingham man, was arrested after physically disciplining his son. The child, who is seven years old, bit one his teachers at his school. Following the incident, the defendant, the child’s father, reportedly destroyed the child’s video game system. The child’s…
This past April, domestic violence legislation was proposed at the statehouse. Both the House and the Senate proposed somewhat different versions of the law, and this past week, a conference committee reconciled the two versions of the bill (SB1892 and H4037). Both the House and the Senate then passed the reconciled…
A new bill – S 853 – was unveiled at the statehouse last Tuesday. The bill establishes new crimes related to domestic violence, new legal provisions to protect alleged victims, and new training for judges in relation to domestic violence cases. Specifically, the bill creates a new charge for a first…
According to an article in the MetroWest Daily News, a Framingham man allegedly assaulted his daughter last week. The article alleges that the defendant was drinking and physically attacked the daughter, including putting her in a headlock at one point. The daughter then reportedly struck the defendant with a knife in…
According to an article in the MetroWest Daily News, an Ashland man assaulted his girlfriend last week. The man was charged with one count of attempted murder, under G. L. c. 265, § 16, and one count of assault and battery, under G. L. c. 265, § 13A. Although allegations of…
In the early morning hours of October 10th, police responded to a Natick home for a reported assault. According to an article in the MetroWest Daily News, a woman called 911 in “hysteric[s].” The police arrived at the home shortly thereafter and spoke with her. She claimed that she and…
According to an article in the MetroWest Daily News, a Framingham woman was arrested Wednesday, December 19th at 11 p.m. after an alleged attack on her boyfriend. The boyfriend was also for allegedly shoving the woman. Police charged the woman, with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon–a stool–burglary during…