Automatic License Suspension for Drug Convictions One of the unintended consequences of being convicted on criminal drug charges in Massachusetts was that your driver’s license would automatically be suspended. However, thanks to a new law that unanimously passed in both chambers of the Legislature and was signed by Governor Charlie…
Victims of Annie DookhanCountless criminal defendants who received drug convictions based on evidence handled by the state drug labs have been closely watching the developments in the Annie Dookhan case. Annie Dookhan was a former crime lab analyst who in 2012 admitted to mishandling hundreds of evidence samples and labeling…
Inventory Search Last month the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court affirmed a trial judge’s decision to suppress evidence unlawfully obtained in the course of an inventory search. In Commonwealth v. Oliveira, decided March 28, 2016 the Court found it unreasonable for the police to conduct an inventory search after the operator…
Felony Theft Massachusetts is one of the few states that imposes serious criminal charges when a person steals an item worth more than $250. Stealing an item valued at more than $250 is a felony theft under Massachusetts law. The consequence of this is that people who commit relatively minor…
Domestic Assault and Battery Charges Domestic assault and battery charges are something that many criminal defendants face. Whether there is some truth to the allegations against you or if you stand falsely accused, if you are being charged with domestic violence, you need to get into touch with an experienced…
Hair Evidence The Massachusetts state police recently have begun to review numerous criminal cases where convictions were made based upon hair sample evidence according to WCVB 5 News. Apparently state crime lab workers were trained on how to perform hair evidence analysis testing incorrectly by the Federal Bureau of Investigation,…
Withdrawing Guilty Pleas and Vacating Convictions Nearly thirty years ago, when I first started practicing law it was rare to have a client ask me to help him withdraw a guilty plea. Case law in that area had not been well developed. Access to criminal convictions was limited. Deportation, denial…
You Do Not Have To Talk To A Police Officer Here is a very common scenario. Someone calls me up for “advice”. They tell me that the police want to talk to them about an incident. I ask them to tell me what happened. Don’t sugar coat it. Just tell…
Making and Selling Fake Drugs It often comes as a surprise to those who are arrested by the police for making or selling fake drugs that the charges are just as serious as being caught dealing in real, illegal substances. You can face jail time, steep fines, and significant penalties.…
Drug Paraphernalia Law enforcement in Massachusetts take the possession and sale of drug paraphernalia very seriously. That is to say, getting busted with drug paraphernalia is nearly as bad as being busted with illegal drugs in Massachusetts. Under M.G.L. Chapter 94C, Section 32I, it is illegal for a person to…