The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) has delivered a Christmas present to about 63 convicts who were sentenced to prison for life when they were juveniles – which, prior to earlier this year, meant age 17 and under. The court barred life sentences without parole for juveniles yesterday (Tuesday, December…
I defend people accused of crimes. Some of those crimes involve drunk driving. A surprisingly high number of those arrests can be remarkably benign and legally unjustified, and in those cases I am proud to fight my hardest to bring out the facts and to defend my client’s legal, constitutional…
If I asked you what “CI” stands for, in the context of police work or criminal law, would you know? Almost certainly not. I wouldn’t expect you to. No, it’s not the name of a new TV crime show. It stands for “Criminal Informant,” or, as they say in the…
In my previous post on this subject, I wrote about how, for a variety of reasons that are both wise, and also some unwise, police departments these days are extremely aggressive when it comes to responding to reports of domestic violence. It is almost standard procedures these days that, when…
As my website page on Massachusetts Domestic Violence Charges makes clear, this is one type of crime that police departments across Massachusetts issue pretty clear department policies on: When patrol officers respond to a call for a “domestic,” (as these dispatch calls are known in law enforcement circles,) someone’s going…
The War on Drugs in this country is something that I have repeatedly criticized as ineffective, only empowering drug lords (both foreign and here in Massachusetts) and destined to failure. That doesn’t mean that I don’t think that law enforcement should play “any” role in Massachusetts drug crimes. It means…
When it comes to violence within a relationship, or after a breakup, the word that does not come to most people’s minds is “teenagers.” We instead think of high school sweethearts, first crushes, first dates, dances and prom nights. Those are all very nice, but another reality exists in the…
What is wrong with people in this country and in this state, that they won’t get the message that texting and smartphone use while behind the wheel, is a death wish? I’ve asked that question so many times that I’ve lost count, because no matter how much carnage occurs on…
In my last post on this subject, I wrote of the literally unbelievable torture intentionally inflicted on an innocent dog, named Puppy Doe by the Animal Rescue League doctors and volunteers that tried, to no avail, to salvage its broken body and life. Police investigators have so far discovered that…
People across Massachusetts, and even the nation, are collectively appalled and sickened by what has become known as the “Puppy Doe” case here. For readers who don’t yet know, a dog was found on a roadside in Quincy, Massachusetts on August 31, barely alive. The female dog, estimated to be…