In Commonwealth v. Wentworth, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled (1) that under the Massachusetts armed career criminal act (ACCA), G.L. c.269, §10G, “the ‘modified categorical approach’ … is the appropriate analytical framework … when determining whether a predicate offense” of assault and battery “involved ‘force’”; and (2) that “the defendant’s…
In Commonwealth v. Tavares, the Supreme Judicial Court reversed the denial of the defendant’s motion to suppress evidence obtained from the search and seizure of a motor vehicle in which he was a passenger, because the police officer improperly extended the duration of the stop of the vehicle. The basic facts…
The Appeals Court affirmed the dismissal of the complaint charging the defendant with operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor (OUI-liquor) in Commonwealth v. Werra. The Court’s decision rested on the fact that the police citation for that offense “was not issued contemporaneously with the incident…
In reversing the denial of the defendant’s motion for a new trial on an indictment charging him with first-degree murder, the SJC ruled in Commonwealth v. Ware that a substantial likelihood of a miscarriage of justice was created by the prosecutor’s failure to correct a state trooper’s false testimony regarding…
In Commonwealth v. Kurko, the Appeals Court opined that where the Commonwealth failed to present to the jury a stipulation that the parties had intended to introduce, the evidence before the jurors at the close of evidence was insufficient to support the defendant’s conviction of violation of the harassment prevention…
In a recent case – Commonwealth v. Holbrook – the Supreme Judicial Court vacated the judge’s denial of the defendant’s motions for third-party discovery, for an evidentiary hearing, and for a new trial, because substantial evidence supportive of the defendant’s third-party culprit defense never reached the jury and further proceedings are…
In Commonwealth v. Suarez, the Appeals Court vacated the defendant’s sentence for assault with intent to rape and remanded the case for resentencing before a different judge, because “the judge’s comments at sentencing risked creating at least the appearance that she sentenced [the defendant] for having committed either rape (a…
In Commonwealth v. Wardsworth, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the occurrence of four trial errors required that the defendant’s convictions of first degree murder and related offenses be reversed. The background was as follows. “[T]wo men opened fire at the Academy Homes residential complex, killing” one man and injuring another. One…
The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the defendant’s conviction of first degree murder in Commonwealth v. Chicas, ruling that the judge did not abuse her discretion in ordering that the trial testimony be communicated “through two translators — Spanish translated into English for the jury, which was then translated back into…
In a recent case – Commonwealth v. Zoe – the Appeals Court vacated the Boston Municipal Court judge’s order requiring that certain criminal records pertaining to the defendant — that were sealed pursuant to G.L. c.276, §100A — be “unsealed.” The background was as follows. “In March 1997, the defendant…