Articles Posted in Assault and Battery

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We have discussed the matter of witness intimidation many times on this blog. This blog’s main purpose is to peel back the curtain of mystery on our criminal justice system and how it impacts you. For example, I have often pointed out how broad a law may be applied in court. Intimidation of a Witness is one such law.

Of course, you are unlikely to feel that Dorchester resident Trevor A. Watson, 44 (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) is a victim of confusion. He was sentenced last week to 30 years in prison for such a crime. Actually, he took it a bit further than what we usually see, apparently. He was convicted of trying to actually murder a federal informant.

I would expect that we all understand that doing something like that is illegal…on a number of fronts.

The case stems back a few years. The year 2000 in fact. Apparently, a cocaine trafficking investigation was ongoing against the Defendant by federal agents. Apparently unwilling to keep his defense to within the allowable guidelines, he went after one of the informants. “Went after” in this case means “stabbing around 10 times, causing damage to various organs”. According to the government, perhaps in an effort to eliminate any doubt, the Defendant made comments during the stabbing, such as, “You talking, huh? You telling?”

And so it was that the Defendant and an associate were awarded criminal charges other than drug trafficking…namely attempted murder.
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Chelsea Massachusetts was the scene of a violent bloody altercation on Friday.

Oscar Guttierez-Nunes, a 27-year-old Chelsea man (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) has been arrested and charged in said altercation. By the end of the altercation, one man was apparently dead and two others were wounded. One of those injured remains in critical condition at Massachusetts General Hospital. The police learned later about the third complainant who had admitted himself into MGH with non-life-threatening injuries
In case anybody wondered, the Defendant was also wounded. According to police, he admitted himself into the hospital under a false name.

The Defendant is currently being held without bail and stands charged with murder and two counts of armed assault with intent to murder and is due back in court on April 7th.

Right now, this is being described as an “attack”. We do not know what that means. Was the Defendant in an a fight with three other guys and somehow got the better part of the deal? Did he even get the “better part”? We know that he was injured as well and one of the others has “:non-life-threatening” injuries. Was he simply a lunatic who attacked a group of men with a knife?
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We seem to be living in the time of the realistic hero. Last year, “Kick-Ass”, a movie about a young man who decided to become a superhero was very popular. More recently, “The Green Hornet” was revisited, now as a semi-comedy, with a more realistic feel as the Green Hornet and Kato are now average guys just trying to “help out”. And this week, we have Bosolakhana Thach of Lynn, hereinafter, “Rod Woman”.

Rod Woman was working at her convenience store on Monday afternoon, when the proverbial “bad guy”, a man wearing a hood, dark sunglasses and a knife came in. The man, hereinafter, “the Robber”) was a calm sort. He leaned over the counter and quietly warned Rod Woman to stay away from any alarms and to give him the money from the register.

What the Robber may not have known was that Rod Woman was, in reality, “Robbery Victim X Two Woman”. She was determined not to allow a third.

As is apparently recorded on the surveillance video (woops!), the Robber, after making his demands, turned his head away from Rod Woman. It was then that Rod woman grabbed a 4-foot, 15-pound iron rod from behind the counter and brought it crashing down on his wrist.

The knife was knocked from the Robber’s hand.
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We celebrate Valentine’s Day in February here in the Commonwealth. So, surely that cannot explain what allegedly passed for wisdom on the part of 49-year-old Gloucester fisherman, John Cusick, (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) in his behavior this summer when dealing with a certain federal fishing monitor.

According to United States Attorney Carmen Ortiz, the Major Crimes Unit in Boston is prosecuting the Defendant on charges of assault and sexual harassment for allegedly hugging and putting his tongue in the ear of an unidentified monitor aboard the Sea Farmer II in July.

The indictment was apparently just handed down. It alleges that the Defendant harassed and assaulted the federal monitor who collects data from commercial fishing vessels while the vessel is engaged in fishing activities,

Fishing monitors are apparently placed on commercial boats by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to be sure that fishermen do not exceed their federally mandated quotas, which have been the subject of protest for years.

The allegations against the Defendant have sparked some controversy. Tina Jackson, president of the American Alliance of Fishermen and their Communities, claims that “NOAA is pulling out all the stops to discredit fishermen because they’re in a lot of trouble…NOAA is under a microscope right now for their actions on enforcement and policy.” She further claims that the fishermen will be lobbying Congress next week to urge them to investigate NOAA.

In a separate case, another gentleman has been indicted for two counts of assault of two monitors..

We have discussed many ways that “justice” is perverted in today’s criminal justice system. Over my man years of experience as a lawyer practicing criminal law, I have seen various cases that the perversion has a political bent. I saw it as a prosecutor in New York and I have seen it as a defense attorney here in Boston. It is perhaps the worst bastardization that the system can suffer.
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While the investigation is still pending, police have already decided that a Springfield man lost his life to his live-in companion.

The police responded to the home of 45-year-old Joel Echols shortly before midnight on Friday. They found Mr. Echols suffering from various stab wounds.

Police responded to the Vinton Street home of 45-year-old Joel Echols shortly before midnight on Friday to find Echols suffering from multiple stab wounds in his chest. He was rushed to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, where he was pronounced dead.

Police believe that there had been a domestic disturbance involving the Mr. Echols and his girlfriend/wife (this has not been established yet apparently). It is further believed that she won the argument by the deadly assault to his upper chest.

The companion, Beverly Caldwell, 41, has been arrested and charged with murder.
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Happy President’s Day! I see that the Commonwealth has been celebrating the long weekend by making all presidents, both past and present, grateful that they no longer need to ride public transportation.

Let’s first turn to Lynn first. There, an MBTA bus driver has been suspended after allegedly having a bit of an issue with a passing vehicle. According to an MBTA spokesman, the driver is said to have thrown a coffee into the passing vehicle.

Apparently, the incident took place when the bus was pulling out of a bus stop. It was then allegedly cut off by a pick-up truck. Being mature Massachusetts drivers, the two exchanged heated words. Then, showing a real outbreak of responsibility, the bus driver is reported to thrown a cup of coffee into the truck, striking a passenger.

The truck driver reported the incident to police, and the bus driver was pulled over in Peabody.

The bus driver has been suspended and is now awaiting a court summons.

As unfortunate as the truck driver was, at least he is still alive. You see, another gentleman was actually struck and killed by a red line train in Cambridge this weekend.
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This winter has presented us with various seasonal weathers…from seemingly Alaskan blizzards to mild Massachusetts spring. It is enough to confuse and to irritate anyone. Apparently, Michael Ciarlone, a 54 year-old Revere gentleman (hereinafter, the “Defendant”), is someone who indeed lost his “cool”.

Allegedly.

According to the Commonwealth, it started when the Defendant used a pickup truck and plow to push snow around a car he believed had parked in his spot on January 14th. When the car’s owner and others came outside, the Defendant is said to have shouted at them and then backed into one man with the truck. Finally, the Defendant is accused of kicking that man in the head and later punching another man in the face, breaking his glasses. According to the Commonwealth, the Defendant was inebriated at the time.

Both recipients were apparently treated for injuries at the scene.

The Defendant was treated to a later arraignment in Chelsea District Court for various charges, including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, malicious destruction of property, and operating under the influence of alcohol.
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Mike Hennebury, a 37-year-old man from Hanover (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) is in trouble as this week comes to a close.

According to the police, the Defendant was on his merry way Tuesday night, driving drunk, when he ran off the road. Say what you will about the Defendant, he is apparently consistent. He has had three prior drunk driving cases in the past.

When the Defendant left the comfort of pavement, he ended up in the front yard of a home in an otherwise peaceful Duxbury neighborhood. There, his car came to a rest and was apparently having difficulty moving. Yes, it was stuck in the snow.

The good news is that a nice 72-year-old woman came out of her home, concerned that he needed help.

The bad news is that he apparently did not want any help. He really did not want any help!
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Two years ago, a group of men capped off a friend’s funeral by allegedly committing murder. These gentlemen were in South Boston and are now hereinafter referred to, collectively, as the “Defendants”.

It was August, 2009, and the Defendants, dressed in their red tuxedos had apparently decided to go “clubbing” to drown their sorrows after the funeral. According to the Commonwealth, they had a verbal disagreement with 22-year-old Jose “Danny Alicea and two of his friends outside Club 33 on Stanhope Street.

These exchanged words were then capped by one of the Defendants’ allegedly throwing a bottle at their sparring partners. Yes, as in assault with a dangerous weapon (to wit: a bottle).

A melee erupted between the two groups.

Police arrived to find Mr. Alicea lying on the ground, bloody and unconscious. People were trying to wake him.

They couldn’t. He was dead.
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Marblehead Massachusetts is not normally thought of as the assault capital of the Commonwealth. Neither is Swampscott for that matter. However, one week ago today, there was an explosion of violence between kids from these towns…complete with dangerous weapons.

Now, we are not talking Boston here, so the weapons are not uzis or other types of firearms. They included primarily baseball bats, pipes and chains.

I am told by one high school juvenile that the fight had actually been scheduled to take place outside the Marblehead High School. However, authorities learned about it before it had a chance to commence and made the kids leave.

The ignited spark of anger was not extinguished by the change in venue, however. It simply moved to a regularly quiet residential street. And then…boom!

The cause of the fight? I am told that a young gentleman of one town made some passes at a young lady of the other town. Unfortunately, said lass had a boyfriend from her own town.

The press coverage of this has not been great. If not for the fact that I live in the area, I might not never have found out about the brawl.
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