Four years after attorney Simon Gilk was arrested for videotaping police officers, the Boston Police Department has admitted the officers were wrong for taking him into custody. But their admittance is too little too late for the attorney who plans on moving forward with his lawsuit against the department. [Read more…]
Registry Certificate Evidence Requires Testimony
A registry certification document is not sufficient evidence to prove that a person was notified of a license suspension. The SJC ruling says that if the Commonwealth is to prove that the person received “notice” that their license was suspended, it cannot simply introduce a certified document from the RMV which says that the notice was sent out. That document is “testimonial” and therefore cannot be introduced without accompanying testimony. [Read more…]
Assault Videographer Turns Self In
A man who made a video recording of an assault at a Massachusetts club, turned himself in, and was charged with assault, kidnapping and robbery. [Read more…]
Can Police Pull You Over Based on an Anonymous Call?
There was an interesting discussion over at masslive.com about whether police can initiate highway stop based entirely on an anonymous tip. “Can police use tips to stop a motorist? It depends”.
The answer implies that it is assuming an anonymous 911 call about an erratic driver who the caller suspects may be drunk or driving dangerously.
The police can’t stop you based entirely on a tip. If they get a report about a dangerous driver on the roads, after locating the car, they follow for a while to independently verify and corroborate that the driver is doing something that warrants a vehicle stop. They wait to witness some act of speeding, weaving across lanes (marked lanes violation), reckless driving (negligent operation), or other driving behavior that could mean a suspected OUI.
[Read more…]Reckless Endangerment of a Child
There have been a few stories in the news about child endangerment in Massachusetts. There are a number of different levels of seriousness of this offense, from accidental neglect to serious criminal [Read more…]
Fugitive Safe Surrender Program Comes to Boston
A Boston Church is working with US Marshall’s to arrange a “safe surrender” for those with non-violent outstanding warrants in Suffolk County, for 4 days only, from Oct 6 to Oct 9th.