Last May, the Massachusetts Legislature passed an important piece of legislation regarding veterans’ rights, which has important implications for veterans facing criminal charges. The complete formal title, “An Act Relative to Veterans’Access, Livelihood, Opportunity and Resources,” and is also commonly referred to as the Valor Act. Among the various provisions…
It was recently reported that a new anti-crime task force will be established in western Massachusetts. Government officials hope that the group will lead to more efficient coordination of investigation into major crimes. David Sullivan, the Northwestern District Attorney, discussed his hopes for the task force, which include enhancing the…
According to data recently released by Massachusetts and the FBI, gun crimes of all kinds are up, these include: Murders committed with firearms Aggravated assaults involving guns Robberies involving guns; and Gunshot injuries Gun owner advocacy groups point to this data as evidence of the lack of efficacy of gun…
Massachusetts government and law enforcement officials have introduced proposals in the hopes of expanding the limits of secret wiretapping. The reasoning behind the expansion is the purported goal of more easily gathering evidence against criminal suspects, such as with drug crimes. According to state Attorney General Martha Coakley, the current…
It was reported today in the Patriot Ledger that two white males allegedly robbed the Marylou’s coffee shop located at 1501 Bedford Street in Abington, Massachusetts at around 11:00 a.m. on Thursday. According to the district manager for the store, Sunisa Loring, these men used a weapon believed to be…
On September 6, 2012, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, the Commonwealth’s highest court, heard legal arguments on both sides of the issue of whether or not a judge should suppress the evidence seized from a defendant’s cellular telephone in circumstances where the phone was seized immediately from the defendant…
It was recently reported on August 2, 2012, that Governor Deval Patrick signed new Massachusetts criminal law legislation that imposes harsh penalties for repeat violent criminal law offenders convicted in the Commonwealth. In doing so, Massachusetts now reportedly joins twenty-six additional states that have imposed strong habitual criminal offender laws.…
The Second Amendment to the Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791, and outlines the protection of the people’s right to keep and bear Arms. Over the years, the rate of gun possession and ownership has greatly increased due to increasing crime rates, expanding population, and people’s own desire to…
In Massachusetts, the crimes of operating under the influence of alcohol or drugs is a very serious criminal offense, for which a conviction can severely impact your future. The official charge is Massachusetts is known as Operating Under the Influence (OUI), and any individual found to be operating a vehicle…
In Massachusetts, the crimes of OUI, DUI, and DWI are very serious criminal offenses, for which a conviction can severely impact your future. The official charge is Massachusetts is known as Operating Under the Influence (OUI), and any individual found to be operating a vehicle after having ingested any alcoholic…