This is “D-week” for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the convicted Marathon bomber. This has brought up a new discussion about the death penalty. That new discussion has brought up some facts which should frighten you a great deal. We will get to them. Presently, there is no death penalty in Massachusetts state…
In my last posting, we discussed Emmanuel Bile and his conviction in the rape trial that had just ended. After the sentencing hearing, Mr. Bile was sentenced to serve eight to ten years in Massachusetts State Prison. The complainant addressed the court at the hearing. She told the judge that…
We have had a number of discussions about how schools (primarily colleges) grapple with the allegations of sex crimes. Some of the “new” and “improved” solutions have boarded on the ludicrous in my experienced opinion, but that is an issue for another day. Today we visit one of the cases…
As discussed in my last blog, Paul Hinkel of Connecticut (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) has been convicted of traveling to Massachusetts with the intention of having sex with what he thought was a 15-year-old girl; the girl did not exist, but a federal agent did in her stead. We have discussed…
It is a story we are hearing quite often these days. Someone is allegedly using the internet to lure an underage boy or girl into sexual activity. I don’t know how many adults are engaging in that practice successfully…but there are certainly a large number of such adults who are…
You may remember Philip Chism (hereinafter, the “defendant”). He is the 15-year-old juvenile who has been charged as an adult with the rape and murder of 24-year-old Danvers High School teacher Colleen Ritzer in 2013. Today, the Defendant’s case is on the calendar again at Salem Superior Court. The issue…
My last posting examined this subject from the standpoint of whether the police have the right to grab your smart-phone without a warrant. It triggered rights guaranteed you courtesy of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Today we continue the search and seizure issue from another angle. Let’s…
Ok, I admit that it is not still yesterday; I did not get this entry up yesterday. It doesn’t mean that I did not try…I was just out doing battle for my client longer than expected. Doing the job right has to take precedence. Believe me, when you are my…
We have been discussing California’s new “Yes Means Yes” bill and its accompanying app. As I have mentioned, the “Yes Means Yes” approach is not really brand new. At least here in the Commonwealth, various colleges and universities have been using the approach. I know…I have handled the cases. In…
It really is quite a comfort, isn’t it? As the article says, “Want to be sure you’re not raping someone? There’s an app for that.” As discussed in my last blog, the app to which I refer is the upbeat-named “Good2Go”. Although I do not seem to be able to…