I am often asked whether Massachusetts prosecutors and judges are more lenient during the holiday season. The answer is like most answers in human events…it depends. As we end the year in which various unlikely Massachusetts criminal defendants have faced “Justice” at the bar, it is worth seeing what sentences…
The Norfolk district attorney’s office says that Brighton resident Joseph Arita and Waltham local Ismael Martinez are serving 20 – 25 years in prison for the 2009 Brookline rape and kidnapping of a 30-year-old woman. Arita, 26, and Martinez, 27, each pleaded guilty earlier this month to one count of…
Sometimes it seems that the criminal justice system uses the intellectual equivalent of a bazooka to tackle an issue as logically mind-bending as kindergarten mathematics. Boston’s Supreme Judicial Court, normally needed to referee issues surrounding Massachusetts Murder, Robbery or search and seizure issues has now been called upon in one…
Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Office has ordered John Twohig to stay away from a female MBTA bus operator that he allegedly assaulted last July during what has been described as a “racially motivated verbal assault.” The action was brought against the Somerville man under the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act (MCRA),…
Toys collected for Toys for Tots, a program that provides gifts for children in need, were stolen from a Burlington warehouse facility between 2a.m. and 6:30 a.m. on Saturday. The 1,500 stolen toys were valued at $15,000. According to police, the thief or thieves took only toys that were appropriate…
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has now changed its mind regarding the role of state authorities in the criminal investigation of illegal aliens. For the past few years, various states have used various tactics in the tracing of illegal aliens. They claim that the discovery of said aliens helps stem the…
Lisa Lavoie, an ex-Holyoke elementary school teacher, has pleaded guilty to Massachusetts statutory rape and enticing a child. The 25-year-old woman is accused of running off with a 15-year-old eighth grader. Lavoie, who has been released until her sentencing next month, is not allowed to contact the teenager. Police discovered…
A Citizen’s Bank on Main Street in Malden was robbed Thursday afternoon, and police are looking for the suspect. At around 1 p.m., a man entered the bank with a note demanding money and warning that he had a weapon. As he was leaving, he ran into problems with the…
Authorities in Massachusetts have arrested Dr. Steven S. Miller, a 68-year-old Wareham dentist for allegedly exchanging drugs for sexual favors with female patients. He was arrested and arraigned in federal court and charged with distributing and dispensing controlled substances without a valid medical purpose. If convicted, Miller could end up…
Middleborough police have received 12 reports of holiday decoration theft from front lawns since the beginning of the month. Among the items stolen were reindeer, lights, inflatable snowmen, Santas and a Grinch, nativity sets, and a Santa Claus mailbox. The mailbox, which belonged to 77-year-old Robert Algier, was found in…