Articles Posted in Violent Crimes

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David Casey of Peabody is being held on one thousand five hundred dollars bail out of the Lynn District Court. He is charged with Assault and Battery by Means of a Dangerous Weapon and Malicious Destruction of Property. It is alleged that on Wednesday night police from Saugus were called for a report of shots being fired. They arrived to find a man with blood on his hands and his face. They then learned that Casey had driven by a Saugus home and shot at three people on a porch. One of the people was shot in the leg. The victim then chased and caught Casey. The two fought. Casey struck the victim with the gun in the head. The victim then hit Casey in the face several times. Casey was apprehended. No one needed medical treatment.

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Gun, Assault Charges for Peabody Man Who Shot at Saugus Man

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Saugus, Peabody, Lynn Firearms Defense Lawyers

Cases like this are usually prosecuted in the district court. The Assault and Battery by Means of a Dangerous Weapon charge carries a possible ten year state prison sentence. The weapon charge carries a possible five year state prison sentence. Both are felonies. Both can be prosecuted however in the district court where the maximum sentence is two and one half years in the house of correction. These are serious charges. Most people do not know that even though the weapon used here is a BB gun there is still a mandatory minimum eighteen month house of correction sentence that Casey must serve if he is convicted of this crime. This is why he needs an Experienced Massachusetts Criminal Lawyer to defend him.

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This past Sunday Angel Ruiz of Lawrence, Massachusetts was arrested in the early morning hours. Authorities allege that Ruiz Raped and beat a woman with whom he had a relationship. Neighbors heard the woman screaming. Officers responding to the scene were informed that cut the woman and left the house. The woman was airlifted to a Boston hospital for treatment. The woman’s children were home at the time of the attack. Ruiz has been charged with Violation of a Restraining Order, Aggravated Rape, Assault and Battery, Larceny and Intimidation of a Witness. The case will be prosecuted in the Essex County Superior Court in Salem. The victim was released from the hospital.

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http://www.eagletribune.com/local/x1388784548/Man-charged-in-violent-rape

Massachusetts Rape Defense Lawyers

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Ruiz is facing a big fight. These charges are severe. The Rape charge carries a maximum sentence of life pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 22(a). This is the more severe Rape Charge, commonly referred to as Aggravated Rape. The district attorney will have to prove not only non-consensual sex but also that the act resulted in serious bodily injury. That aspect of the law might appear satisfied by the fact that the victim was cut and that her injuries necessitated hospitalization. If the prosecutor cannot meet its burden as to the aggravated portion of the offense then there is a maximum twenty year sentence for a conviction of this crime. Either way, if this article is factually accurate Ruiz is facing a lengthy state prison sentence if his is convicted. As with any serious case in this jurisdiction, Ruiz needs to Hire an Experienced Massachusetts Rape Defense Lawyer.

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A Salem, Massachusetts was playing cards at his parent’s home. Around 5:00 a.m. he and the other three card man players played a high stakes hand. He had just cashed a paycheck worth about one thousand nine hundred dollars. He lost and another player picked up the money. They attempted to leave. The defendant however pushed one of the men into a corner of the kitchen and reached for a knife. The police were called and the assailant was arrested. Officers found him with the knife in his hand. He was the only one arrested notwithstanding his representation that one of the other players had tried to steal his money and grabbed him by the neck. The man has been charged with Assault and Battery By Means of a Dangerous Weapon in the Salem District Court. The defendant claimed that everyone had been drinking and that he though the high stakes game was a “joke”.

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http://www.salemnews.com/local/x1037670271/Man-accused-of-assault-after-he-loses-card-game

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According to the article Konstadt intends to bring a complaint against one of the others himself. This is known as taking a cross-complaint. It is a way to try to get the other party to assert his or her Fifth Amendment privilege and refuse to testify against the person initially charged. Sometimes this works and the case gets dismissed. However, in this case that might not be so easy. At least two other people were involved in the card game and saw the scuffle. The district attorney will call them to testify and they probably do not have a privilege. Now, if the defendant has no criminal record this case might get continued without a finding. The interesting question is who will get the money.

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In Commonwealth v. Sliech-Brodeur decided earlier this month the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court reversed the first degree murder conviction of a woman who killed her husband. The Court recited the following facts:

The victim and the defendant married in 1994. He was sixty. She was forty nine. They lived in West Springfield and Florida during the winter months. The couple had some marital problems centering on finances. In 2004 these problems escalated. There were discussions about divorce and it became evident that that would materialize. On July 28, 2004 the defendant called her son and told him that there was a problem. He arrived at the home and immediately called the police. The police arrived to find the defendant upset and complaining that the victim had hit her. The victim, her husband was found in the dining room dead. He had been stabbed thirty four times in the chest, neck, head and back. It was suggested to responding officers that the defendant had ingested twenty five Klonopins and that she was suicidal. The defendant’s home was Searched. Officers found blood in the master bedroom, on the sheets, bed and pillows. The case was defended on a theory of lack of criminal responsibility. The Commonwealth rebutted with its own expert.

On appeal the defendant argued prejudice due to certain pre-trial discovery orders. A lower court judge ordered the defendant surrender its expert’s reports, correspondence relating to the defendant, tests and evaluations and the materials supporting their results to the Commonwealth’s expert. The Supreme Judicial Court concluded that these discovery orders were violative of the defendants’ constitutional rights and granted a new trial. All the a court can order in these situations is that the defendant submit to a court ordered psychiatric examination, not the production of materials protected by the work product privilege, attorney-client privilege or protected by the privilege against self-incrimination.

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Commonwealth v. Sliech-Brodeur, July 19, 2010

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This case shows the importance of fighting reciprocal discovery orders. Since Commonwealth v. Durham was decided in 2006 prosecutors have pressed judges to order the defense to provide them with any conceivable piece of evidence that might be offered at trial. The Durham case was decided narrowly, 4-3. Thus, challenges to discovery orders, as done here, may create viable appellate issues and the exceptions to Durham will grow. Defense and appellate counsel did a great job in this case.

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Kristen Shields of North Andover, Massachusetts was charged in the Lowell District Court with Assault and Battery By Means of a Dangerous Weapon and Assault With the Intent to Murder. According to reports, Shields and her boyfriend were engaged in consensual sexual acts with a thirty nine New Hampshire woman. The New Hampshire woman told the police that the three were having sex and that Shields got out of bed and told the two to continue with their business. Shields then re-entered the bedroom and got jealous. She began throwing objects in the room and took a kitchen knife and stabbed her boyfriend in the chest. Shields admitted to the attack.

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http://www.lowellsun.com/ci_15503960?source=rss_viewed

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Lowell, Massachusetts Stabbing Defense Lawyer

The crime of Assault With Intent to Murder in Massachusetts is identified by Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 18. The law states that anyone armed with a dangerous weapon who assaults another with the intent to murder that person faces a state prison sentence of up to twenty years if convicted. I have written before that these cases are difficult to prove in that the prosecution must show the person’s intent at the time the act was committed. The element of intent in crimes of passion often becomes the major point of contention and juries rarely convict people accused of committing this crime. They are much more likely to convict on the Assault by Means of a Dangerous Weapon indictment that usually gets charged in connection with Assault With the Intent to Murder. I would imagine that Shields’ sentence in this case will be impacted by the desires of the victim. With excellent representation she might be able to avoid prison time.

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This past Thursday Santo “Macho” Suarez of Lawrence, Massachusetts was arrested and charged with Breaking and Entering, School Zone Violation and Distribution of a Class B Substance, Crack Cocaine. He was also charged with Resisting Arrest and Disorderly Person. According to reports Suarez sold Crack Cocaine to an undercover police officer. As officers attempted to apprehend him Suarez took off in his car. He then abandoned the car and fled on foot. He broke into a home and hid in a closet. He then resisted police attempts to arrest him. Suarez also has a prior conviction for Distribution of Cocaine in Lawrence.

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http://www.eagletribune.com/local/x1907084331/Police-Man-hid-in-house-after-selling-drugs-to-officer

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Lawrence, Massachusetts Cocaine Distribution Defense Lawyer

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 94C Section 32A states that anyone convicted of distributing cocaine after having been previously convicted of the same offense shall be punished by a minimum mandatory three year sentence. This is a felony in Massachusetts. The district court does not have jurisdiction over this crime so unless the district attorney agrees to reduce the charges Suarez is going to be prosecuted in the Essex County Superior Court in Salem. Hand to hand sales to undercover officers are very difficult to defend. Experienced Massachusetts Criminal Lawyers who try cases like this one often employ an entrapment defense. This requires the prosecution to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was predisposed to committing this crime and that his will was not overborne by aggressive police officers.

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Elias Moya is being held without bail pending a hearing on dangerousness in the Lynn District Court. He is charged with Assault and Battery on a Pregnant Woman and Assault and Battery by Means of a Dangerous Weapon. According to the Lynn Item, Moya who is from Salem, Massachusetts went to the victim’s home along with his girlfriend. He got into an argument with his brother and his brother’s pregnant girlfriend. The argument grew violent and Moya struck the pregnant woman in her stomach. Moya and his brother fought. They were separated at which time Moya threw a set of keys at his brother’s head.

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Lynn, Massachusetts Domestic Assault and Battery Lawyer

Assault and Battery on a Pregnant Woman is a felony and prohibited by M.G.L. ch. 265 Section 13A. There is a potential five year prison sentence associated with a conviction for this offense. These cases are usually difficult for the district attorney to prosecuted. Even though police intervention was sought family members tend not to testify against one another after they have had time to cool off. Neither Moya nor his girlfriend was found at the scene. There appear to be no other witnesses to this incident. Thus, only Moya’s brother and his brother’s girlfriend will be able to make this case for the prosecution. Cases like this one often get dismissed. It would not surprise me to find out the Moya’s biggest punishment was getting held in jail during the pendency of the dangerousness proceeding.

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On April 29, 2010 the manager of a local storage company contacted the Framingham Police to report an incident. He stated that around 6:30 p.m. an employee heard his wife tell someone that they could not urinate on the outside of the business property. The offender then turned towards the woman, penis in hand. She complained. He responded that if she was offended then to stop looking. A male employee then attempted to confront the man who by that time was sitting in his SUV. The driver of the SUV, a police officer pointed a gun at him and stated “move it or get shot; you are interfering with the police”. The officers being accused are Scott Brown and Lenny Pini. Apparently the storage facility manager provided police with security videos.

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http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/police_and_fire/x88774638/Framingham-cop-accused-of-gun-threat

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Assault by Means of a Dangerous Weapon Lawyer Massachusetts

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 15B states that anyone who assaults someone with a dangerous weapon is guilty of a felony and faces up to five years in state prison. To proved someone guilty of this offense the district attorney must prove that the accused used “an outward demonstration of force” and that he or she had the “apparent ability to injure” the victim. Certainly brandishing a gun alone would satisfy the elements of the offense. That, coupled with a verbal threat makes the prosecutor’s case even easier to prove. The surveillance videotape provides an interesting twist to this case. If the video is clear and corroborates the witnesses’ account of the crime the officers are in trouble. If however it is not so clear and tends to show exaggeration on the part of the manager this case becomes more defensible.

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Brandon Payne of Lynn, Massachusetts was arrested last week and charged with the Attempted Murder of Elder Palma. He joins co-defendants Earl Damico and Darkens Bonnett, also charged in connection with last week’s shooting. Payne is also facing charges of Possession of a Firearm, Possession of Ammunition, Breaking and Entering in the Nightime, Receiving Stolen Property Valued in Excess of $250 and Possessing a Firearm in During the Commission of a Felony. The case is currently pending in the Lynn District Court but it is expected that this case will be prosecuted in Salem in the Essex County Superior Court. It is expected that Payne will be held without bail as is the case with Damico and Bonnett.

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Essex County Massachusetts Firearms, Violent Crimes Lawyer

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Boston, Massachusetts Felony Defense Lawyer

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 18B states that anyone who possesses a firearm during the commission of or attempted commission of a felony is guilty of an additional offense, requiring a mandatory minimum five year state prison sentence. If the weapon is a large capacity weapon there is a ten year minimum mandatory sentence. Judges are not permitted to suspend these sentences nor can they place the defendant on probation. This statute gives the district attorney a significant advantage during the plea bargaining process. In exchange for them dropping this charge they will at times offer a reduced sentence on a plea to the other charges. This provides them with great leverage early on.

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Elizabeth Cushman, also known as Mama Deuce is being held on two thousand five hundred dollars cash bail for supposedly threatening a witness on a Domestic Violence case. It is alleged that Cushman who might have a role in the Deuce Boyz organization called and left a threatening message on the voicemail of a victim in a case involving Raymundo Henriquez, the reputed leader of the Deuce Boyz, a Lynn based street gang. Cushman is thirty nine years old. She has a history of Firearms Charges. There are also allegations that Henriquez has threatened the same woman whom authorities claim he assaulted a while ago. The case is pending in the Salem District Court.

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http://www.salemnews.com/local/x712215916/Woman-charged-with-threatening-a-witness

Witness Intimidation in Massachusetts

In Massachusetts the crime of Intimidation of a Witness is proscribed by G.L. 268 Section 13B. The law states that anyone who threatens, injures, emotionally assaults or otherwise intimidates a potential witness in a case is guilty of a felony and faces up to ten years in state prison. The legislative intent of the statute is to protect witnesses from being intimidated or harassed so that they do not become reluctant to give truthful evidence in investigatory or judicial proceedings. An essential element of the crime is the offer of a bribe or the use of intimidation, force, or the threat of force. The district attorney must prove all elements beyone a reasonable doubt. Intimidation has been defined as putting person in fear for purpose of influencing his or her conduct.

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