Articles Posted in Important SJC Decisions

The Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) recently reviewed Commonwealth v. Larose to answer whether it was reasonable, and therefore valid, for a police officer to stop the defendant’s motor vehicle for failing to drive entirely within a marked traffic lane. The defendant was traveling during the early morning hours on Route…

In the case of Commonwealth v. Sam C. Wassilie, the Supreme Judicial Court for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (SJC) is currently considering whether a Superior Court judge properly dismissed criminal charges involving alleged “upskirting”. Upskirting is traditionally defined as secretly filming/photographing up a woman’s skirt to view her private areas.…

A Boston police officer found himself on the wrong side of inaccurate scientific evidence when he was denied employment based on a positive hair drug analysis.  The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is currently considering a case titled Boston Police Department v. Michael Gannon and The Massachusetts Civil Service Commissioninvolving the…

In Commonwealth v. Finn, the Massachusetts SJC will decide whether the Superior Court can hold a defendant under the dangerousness statute of 58A after the defendant was released by the district court. The statute says that a person who is “held under arrest” for a felony as enumerated in Subsection 1…

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will decide whether the failure to secure a child properly in a car seat can result in an involuntary manslaughter conviction.  The case is Commonwealth v. Hardy, where the defendant Hardy was convicted by a jury of involuntary manslaughter.  On appeal, Hardy argues that her…

The Massachusetts SJC held today in Commonwealth v. Richard Sherman, Jr. that in a rape trial, when the sexual encounter starts consensual and it is alleged that the victim withdrew her consent, that the defendant is entitled to a jury instruction that a consensual sexual encounter can become rape if…

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court heard oral argument in the case of Commonwealth v. Jesse Carrillo, where the defendant was convicted of involuntary manslaughter based on providing heroin to the deceased.  The defendant was a heroin addict himself and the evidence at trial indicated that he went to New York…

The Massachusetts decided Commonwealth v. Davis today further defining the law as it related to OUI marijuana in Massachusetts.  The Davis decision involved the issue of when the police have probable cause to arrest someone for OUI marijuana.   The SJC found that the judge correctly denied the motion to…

In the case of Commonwealth v. Christ O. Lys’, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has to address what type of evidence is required at a motion hearing to warrant vacating a plea based on ineffective assistance of counsel.  In the defendant, filed a motion for new trial to vacate a…

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will review a motion to suppress that was allowed out of the Eastern Hampshire District Court where the judge found that a single crossing of the fog line for 2 to 3 seconds did not provide reasonable suspicion for a traffic stop and was not…