Justia Massachusetts Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

A juvenile was seen masturbating in a parked car and was charged with open and gross lewdness and lascivious behavior, a felony. At trial, the jury was also instructed on the lesser included offense of indecent exposure, a misdemeanor punishable by no more than six months in jail. The jury found the juvenile delinquent only of the lesser included offense. The juvenile, who had no prior offenses, argued that the delinquency adjudication must be dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.The Juvenile Court judge denied the motion to dismiss and sentenced the juvenile to a continuance without a finding until his nineteenth birthday, after which the charge was dismissed. The juvenile appealed, and the Supreme Judicial Court transferred the case from the Appeals Court to address whether the Juvenile Court retained jurisdiction over a first offense of a minor misdemeanor after a jury trial.The Supreme Judicial Court concluded that once the jury found the juvenile delinquent only of a minor misdemeanor and it was undisputed that it was his first offense, the Juvenile Court no longer had subject matter jurisdiction. The court held that the delinquency adjudication should have been dismissed and recorded only as a Wallace W. determination. The court vacated the adjudication of delinquency and remanded the matter to the Juvenile Court with instructions to make the appropriate entry. View "Commonwealth v. Vince V." on Justia Law

On August 14, 2018, Yashua Amado, Darrell Smith, and Jerome Smith were shot while sitting in Amado's car on Deering Road in Mattapan. Amado was killed, and Darrell and Jerome sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The shooter was never identified. Dewane M. Tse was indicted for first-degree murder and two counts of armed assault with intent to murder, accused of participating in a joint venture by following the victims and driving the shooter to and from the crime scene.In the Superior Court, a jury convicted Tse of first-degree murder based on deliberate premeditation regarding Amado and armed assault with intent to murder Darrell. Tse was acquitted of the charge related to Jerome. Tse's motions for required findings of not guilty were denied by the trial judge, who sentenced him to life without parole for the murder and a concurrent term for the armed assault. Tse appealed, arguing insufficient evidence to prove he knowingly participated in the shooting or shared the shooter's lethal intent.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case. The court found that the evidence was insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Tse knew of or shared the shooter's lethal intent. The court noted that the Commonwealth's reliance on the manner in which Tse maneuvered the vehicle was speculative and did not establish the necessary intent. Consequently, the court reversed Tse's convictions for first-degree murder and armed assault with intent to murder, set aside the verdicts, and remanded the case to the Superior Court for entry of required findings of not guilty. View "Commonwealth v. Tse" on Justia Law

The defendant, Carlos Colina, killed Jonathan Camilien in his Cambridge apartment by strangling him in a chokehold and subsequently dismembered the body. The dismembered torso was found in a duffel bag on a nearby walkway, leading investigators to the defendant's apartment where they discovered rap music lyrics describing similar acts. The defendant was convicted of first-degree murder and improper disposal of human remains. He appealed, arguing that the admission of rap lyrics and other evidence was prejudicial and that the search warrants were deficient.The Superior Court denied the defendant's pretrial motion to suppress evidence obtained from search warrants, and the trial judge admitted the rap lyrics and records of the defendant's online purchases. The jury found the defendant guilty, and he was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder and six months for improper disposal of human remains.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case and affirmed the convictions. The court held that the rap lyrics were admissible as they were relevant to the defendant's state of mind and intent, and their probative value outweighed any prejudicial effect. The search warrants were found to be supported by probable cause and sufficiently particular. The court also concluded that the trial judge's instructions to the jury were proper and that any errors in the prosecutor's closing argument or the exclusion of certain jury instructions were not prejudicial. The court found no basis for relief under G. L. c. 278, § 33E, and affirmed the judgments. View "Commonwealth v. Colina" on Justia Law

On the night of July 1, 2015, the defendant and his accomplice attempted to rob three women working as escorts at different hotels. The first woman denied them entry, the second was robbed at gunpoint, and the third was shot and killed. The defendant and his accomplice were tried jointly, and a jury convicted them of first-degree murder based on felony-murder, among other charges.The Superior Court found the defendant guilty on all charges, including murder in the first degree, attempted armed robbery, unlawful possession of a firearm, armed robbery, home invasion, and armed assault in a dwelling. The defendant appealed, arguing errors in jury selection, improper identification by a police officer, erroneous jury instructions, and the denial of an accident instruction. He also contended that his firearm conviction should be vacated based on a recent court decision.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case. It held that the trial judge did not abuse discretion in dismissing two jurors for cause due to their lack of comprehension. The court found that the police officer's identification of the defendant in surveillance footage was admitted in error but did not prejudice the defendant due to the overwhelming evidence against him. The court also ruled that the jury instructions were consistent with legal standards and that the defendant was not entitled to an accident instruction due to lack of evidence. The court vacated the defendant's conviction for unlawful possession of a firearm and remanded for a new trial on that charge. The conviction for attempted armed robbery was vacated as duplicative, but the remaining judgments were affirmed. View "Commonwealth v. Jeune" on Justia Law

The case involves Roberto Cruz, who was convicted of two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of fourteen. The incidents occurred when Cruz, nearly sixty years old, hugged and kissed a thirteen-year-old girl, Jane, without her consent. Cruz was also charged with child enticement and simple assault and battery, but the latter charge was dismissed by the Commonwealth before the trial. The jury acquitted Cruz of child enticement and one count of indecent assault and battery but convicted him of the other two counts.Cruz appealed his convictions, arguing that the evidence was insufficient to prove the assaults were indecent. The Massachusetts Appeals Court agreed, reversing his convictions on the grounds that the conduct did not meet the statutory definition of indecent assault and battery. Following this reversal, Cruz filed a civil lawsuit seeking compensation for wrongful conviction under G. L. c. 258D. The Commonwealth moved for summary judgment, arguing that the reversal did not establish Cruz's innocence of the simple assault and battery charge, which had been dismissed earlier.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case. The court held that the eligibility for compensation under G. L. c. 258D is limited to felony convictions and does not include misdemeanors like simple assault and battery. Therefore, the court affirmed the Superior Court's denial of the Commonwealth's motion for summary judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings. The court concluded that Cruz met the eligibility requirements for compensation as the reversal of his felony convictions tended to establish his innocence of those charges. View "Cruz v. Commonwealth" on Justia Law

The case involves a probationer who was arrested during a traffic stop and subsequently charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute and unlawful possession of a firearm. During the traffic stop, a state trooper observed the vehicle speeding and making unsafe lane changes. Upon stopping the vehicle, the trooper noticed suspicious behavior from the back seat passenger and found drugs and a firearm in the vehicle. The probationer was found to have thrown a bag containing drugs to the back seat passenger as the vehicle was being pulled over.The Superior Court judge found the probationer in violation of his probation conditions, revoked his probation, and sentenced him to state prison. The probationer appealed, arguing that the evidence was insufficient to prove he possessed cocaine with intent to distribute and unlawfully possessed a firearm. He also claimed ineffective assistance of counsel for not moving to suppress the evidence on equal protection grounds, alleging racial animosity by the state trooper.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case and upheld the lower court's decision. The court found sufficient evidence to support the probation violation, including the possession and intent to distribute cocaine and the unlawful possession of a firearm. The court also rejected the claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, stating that the exclusionary rule does not generally apply to probation revocation proceedings and that the counsel's performance did not fall below the standard of an ordinary fallible lawyer.The court affirmed the revocation of probation and the denial of the motion for a new hearing. View "Commonwealth v. Gelin" on Justia Law

The defendant was involved in a kidnapping scheme orchestrated by James Feeney, who sought revenge against the victim, James Robertson, due to a romantic rivalry. Feeney enlisted the help of his cousin Alfred Ricci and the defendant, who was Feeney's car mechanic. Disguised as probation officers, the defendant and Ricci went to the victim's home, falsely claimed they were taking him for a random drug test, and brought him to Ricci's garage where Feeney was waiting. The victim was restrained in a metal chair bolted to the floor. Feeney later inflicted serious bodily injury on the victim, who was eventually found dead.The defendant was indicted for kidnapping, conspiracy, murder, and aggravated kidnapping. At trial, the judge denied the defendant's motion for a required finding of not guilty on the aggravated kidnapping charge. The jury found the defendant guilty of involuntary manslaughter, conspiracy to kidnap, and aggravated kidnapping. The defendant was sentenced to 25-30 years for aggravated kidnapping, with concurrent sentences for manslaughter and conspiracy. The Appeals Court affirmed the conviction, but a dissenting opinion argued that the rule of lenity should apply due to ambiguity in the statute.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case and concluded that the statute requires the dangerous weapon to be used to inflict serious bodily injury. The court found that the jury instructions were erroneous and prejudicial, as they allowed for a conviction without proving the weapon was used to inflict injury. The court vacated the defendant's conviction of aggravated kidnapping and remanded the case for further proceedings, allowing the Commonwealth to either move for sentencing on the lesser included offense of kidnapping or retry the defendant on the aggravated kidnapping charge. View "Commonwealth v. Morrison" on Justia Law

The defendant is alleged to have raped eight women by luring heavily intoxicated women into his vehicle under the guise of being a rideshare operator, then raping them after they passed out, often recording the assaults. He was indicted on multiple charges across three separate dockets in the Superior Court, including aggravated rape, indecent assault and battery, kidnapping, and photographing an unsuspecting nude person. Initially, cash bail was set, but later increased. The Commonwealth moved for pretrial detention based on dangerousness under General Laws c. 276, § 58A, which was granted after hearings.The defendant filed several motions for bail review and reconsideration of his pretrial detention, all of which were denied by the Superior Court. The motion judge concluded that rape qualifies as a predicate offense under the force clause of § 58A because it involves the use of force. The defendant then appealed to the Supreme Judicial Court for Suffolk County, arguing that rape should not be considered a predicate offense under § 58A and that the evidence did not warrant his detention.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case and affirmed the lower court's decision. The court held that rape, as defined under G. L. c. 265, § 22, qualifies as a predicate offense under the force clause of § 58A because it inherently involves physical force. The court distinguished rape from other offenses like indecent assault and battery and statutory rape, which do not necessarily involve physical force. The court emphasized that the act of forced penetration, regardless of the victim's capacity to consent, constitutes physical force sufficient to meet the requirements of § 58A. The judgment of the single justice denying the defendant's emergency petition for relief was affirmed. View "Campbell v. Commonwealth" on Justia Law

The defendant was convicted of sexual offenses against two minor girls, Kathy and Denise, who lived with him at the time of the alleged abuse. Kathy testified that the defendant touched her inappropriately on multiple occasions, including an incident where he allegedly penetrated her. Denise testified that the defendant sexually abused her in various ways, including touching and penetrating her. The defendant sought to introduce evidence of Denise's prior allegations of sexual abuse by a third party, arguing that the similarities between those allegations and her allegations against him suggested fabrication.The Superior Court judge excluded evidence of Denise's prior allegations under the rape shield statute, which generally bars evidence of a victim's past sexual conduct. The judge also prohibited cross-examination on this topic, reasoning that the evidence did not fall within any exceptions to the statute and that the policy of protecting victims, especially children, favored exclusion. The jury convicted the defendant on several charges, but acquitted him on others. The Appeals Court affirmed the convictions, and the defendant sought further appellate review.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case and held that the trial judge erred in excluding evidence of Denise's prior allegations of sexual abuse. The court found that the rape shield statute did apply to the evidence in question but concluded that the exclusion violated the defendant's constitutional rights to confront witnesses and present a complete defense. The court determined that the similarities between Denise's allegations against the defendant and her prior allegations were significant enough to warrant cross-examination. The court reversed the convictions and remanded the case for a new trial, emphasizing that the error was not harmless beyond a reasonable doubt given the centrality of Denise's testimony to the prosecution's case. View "Commonwealth v. Jacques" on Justia Law

The defendant was convicted of sexual offenses against his granddaughter and sentenced to state prison followed by five years of supervised probation. The probation conditions included GPS monitoring and a requirement to stay away from the victim and her family. After his release, the defendant moved to vacate the GPS condition, arguing it was unconstitutional without an individualized determination of its reasonableness, as required by a recent court decision.The Superior Court judge denied the motion, finding the GPS condition reasonable and added exclusion zones for the cities of Framingham and Marlborough, which were not specified in the original sentence. The defendant appealed, arguing that the GPS condition was unreasonable and that adding exclusion zones violated double jeopardy principles.The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reviewed the case. It held that the addition of exclusion zones did not violate double jeopardy because the original sentence contemplated such zones. However, the court found that the scope of the exclusion zones, covering entire cities, was overly broad and increased the severity of the defendant's sentence. The court affirmed the GPS condition as reasonable, given the seriousness of the offense and the defendant's moderate risk of reoffense, but remanded for revision of the exclusion zones to be consistent with statutory and probationary goals.The court also directed the probation department to remove GPS monitors from defendants who had not received a reasonableness hearing and to refrain from attaching monitors until such hearings are held, ensuring compliance with constitutional requirements. View "Commonwealth v. Rodriguez" on Justia Law