Articles Posted in Felonies and Violent Crimes

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As a Boston criminal defense attorney, I don’t seem to be able to read a news story and simply let it be. Particularly when it involves our criminal justice system and its participants.

After days of being unable to post the blog (again), I went looking for a story about which to write. At first, I thought I was thrown back to a few years ago when the clergy were in Justice’s sites, with now-adult-previous-child-complainants remembering sexual assaults of days gone by. This story, however, was a bit different.

The item involved the Reverend Emile B. (hereinafter, “Father Defendant”). He is a Walpole priest who was arrested by the State Police earlier this week on charges of indecent assault and battery.
The complainant, a 21-year-old-man, alleges that the assault occurred while he was an adult…in fact, this very week.

The accusation is that Father Defendant , co-pastor at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in Walpole, followed the complainant into a wooded area behind the Route 138 Park and Ride lot in Canton at about 8:30 a.m. and touched him inappropriately, State Police said in a statement. The complainant claims that he then ran out of the woods and back into the lot to call the police. It was then that he allegedly observed Father Defendant get into his car. The complainant wrote down the license plate number and State Police tracked Father Defendant down at his home in Walpole, according to the statement.
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At his arraignment this month, Thomas J. Mortimer IV pleaded not guilty to four counts of Massachusetts first-degree murder in the deaths of his wife Laura Stone Mortimer, 2-year-old daughter Charlotte, 4-year-old son Thomas Mortimer V, and mother-in-law Ragna Ellen Stone. The 43-year-old Winchester software salesman was apprehended on June 17 close to the Vermont line after a driver that stopped to help him with his car on Route 10 recognized him and contacted the authorities.

An arrest warrant had been issued for Mortimer after the bodies were discovered in their home on June 16. Relatives reportedly had not been able to contact the family since June 14. Mortimer is accused of using “sharp objects” and “blunt force trauma” to kill the victims.

Middlesex District Attorney Gerard T. Leone Jr. says that Mortimer had left behind a note confessing to the murders while citing marital problems and financial issues. Mortimer is currently unemployed.

Mortimer’s Massachusetts criminal defense lawyer has said that the defendant’s mental health will be a factor in the case. She is seeking a psychiatric evaluation from Dr. Marc Whaley, a forensic psychiatrist, which indicates that she may make an insanity plea on Mortimer’s behalf. Mounting an insanity defense is an extensive process that can take over a year.

The charge of Massachusetts first-degree murder can refer to the premeditated and deliberate killing of another person, murdering someone while committing a capital felony, or the killing someone in an extremely cruel manner. A conviction for this crime can land a defendant in jail for life. This is not the type of case that you want to tackle without an experienced Boston homicide defense lawyer on your side.

Not-guilty plea in 4 Winchester deaths, Boston Globe, June 19, 2010
Four family members found dead in Winchester home, My Fox Buston, June 16, 2010

Related Web Resources:

Murder, Cornell Law School

The Insanity Defense, Washington Post Continue reading

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Bryan Harris, a South End resident, was arrested by police on Friday. The 26-year-old Boston man was charged with Massachusetts unarmed robbery, parental kidnapping, larceny over $250, assault and battery, and a dangerous weapon unlawfully carried. His arraignment is scheduled for Monday.

According to Boston police, a woman contacted police on Friday afternoon to report that Harris, her live-in boyfriend, had kidnapped their 1-year-old girl. She claims that she and Harris had gotten into a verbal dispute and when she asked him to leave he allegedly punched her face and shoved her into a closet.

The woman says that Harris then packed his clothes, stole her cell phone and debit card, and told her he was leaving the state with their daughter.

The authorities sent out an alert. Police later apprehended Harris on a Fung Wah bus on the Massachusetts Turnpike. The bus was going to New York. His daughter, Estrada, was with him. Harris surrendered to the cops.

Massachusetts Parental Kidnapping
Under state law, the kidnapping of a minor or incompetent by a relative is considered a crime that is punishable by a one-year maximum prison sentence and/or a $1,000 fine. If the child is endangered in the process or taken outside the commonwealth, a maximum 5-year prison sentence and/or a $5,000 fine is possible.

Man is arrested after allegedly fleeing with baby girl, The Boston Globe, June 25, 2010
Related Web Resource:
Parental Kidnapping Statutes, NDAA (PDF)

The General Laws of Massachusetts
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Sometimes, you find a case that seems to reveal a new low in criminal acts. As a Boston criminal defense attorney for many years, I have seen more than my fill.

Allegedly, that is.

A Brighton man was arrested Monday night for allegedly robbing a 67-year-old woman who uses a wheelchair for mobility purposes, according to police officials.

Jerdon B, 48, (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) is said gentleman. At about 11:40p.m., officers responded to the Mission Hill neighborhood to investigate the event.
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The Defendant was charged with unarmed robbery for allegedly robbing the complainant while she was waiting for the Green Line trolley, police said. The suspect then allegedly pushed her onto the tracks on Huntington Avenue.

His reward? Ten bucks.
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Amy Bishop, the University of Alabama-Huntsville professor charged with killing three colleagues and injuring three others on February 12, is now charged with Massachusetts first-degree murder in the 1986 shooting death of her brother Seth Bishop.

After originally finding that Bishop accidentally killed her 18-year-old brother, prosecutors reopened the case after the February incident. They now say that police back then did not share important evidence, including Bishop’s alleged attempt at stealing a car from a dealership after she shot her brother, and they are wondering why police never charged her.

At the time, Bishop told the cops that she accidentally shot Seth while attempting to unload her father’s 12-gauge shotgun. Her mother, who witnessed the incident, supported her daughter’s claim.

Investigators now say that even prior to shooting her brother, Bishop kept a newspaper clipping about the 1986 murders of TV star Patrick Duffy’s parents. A teenager had used the same type of gun to kill both of them before stealing a vehicle from an auto dealership.

John V. Polio, the Braintree police chief at the time of Seth’s shooting, said that the murder indictment does not convince him that Bishop is guilty. He says that back then there were too many unanswered questions to determine whether Bishop had intended to shoot her brother. Meantime, the Quincy, Massachusetts lawyer for Bishop’s parents says that the family maintains the tragic shooting incident was an accident and that Amy, who was very close to Seth, had no reason to kill him.

After she was indicted for her brother’s murder, Bishop tried to commit suicide. She was treated at a hospital before returning to an Alabama jail.

Bishop’s criminal defense lawyer says the latest charge against Bishop will be used in any insanity defense. Bishop is charged with capital murder and attempted murder in the Alabama University shootings.

Amy Bishop charged with murder for 1986 shooting of brother, Boston.com, June 16, 2010
Bishop lawyer says Boston case may help defense, Lake Wylie Pilot, June 16, 2010
Amy Bishop Attempts Suicide After Learning of Murder Charge in Brother’s Death, Say Sources, CBS, June 18, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Boston Ghosts Of Criminal Past Continue To Haunt Prof. Amy Bishop, Now Accused Of Murders By Firearm, Boston Criminal Lawyer, February 18, 2010
Police Report from the 1986 shooting, Boston.com Continue reading

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19-year-old Sherman Badgett is being held without bail. The Dorchester teenager has pleaded not guilty to charges of Massachusetts assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, first-degree murder, and unlawful possession of a firearm. Badgett is accused of fatally shooting Aaron Brown, also 19, on August 29, 2009 outside the Dorchester YMCA.

According to authorities Brown, Badgett, and Tyree Draughn, 18, became involved in dispute while at the YMCA dance. Draughn, who is charged with and has pleaded not guilty to the charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and accessory after the fact, allegedly pulled out a gun and pointed it at a group of people.

The teenagers were ordered to leave the YMCA and that was when Badgett allegedly pulled out a gun and fired three shots. One bullet struck a wall, another hit another victim’s ear, and the third one hit Brown. Badgett and Draughn were not apprehended until several month’s after Brown’s shooting death.

First-Degree Murder
First-degree murder is considered one of the most serious crimes and can come with a maximum lifetime prison sentence without the chance of parole. Bail is usually denied in these criminal cases.

Boston man pleads innocent to YMCA slaying, WHDH, June 15, 2010
Boston man pleads innocent to YMCA slaying, Boston Herald, June 15, 2010
Teen killed at YMCA dance, Boston.com, August 31, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Massachusetts General Laws

Murder, First Degree, Lectlaw.com Continue reading

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Benjamin F. Haskell, one of three white men who originally pleaded not guilty to conspiracy charges in a civil rights violation related to the burning of a predominantly black Springfield church, is scheduled to plead guilty during a change of plea hearing on Wednesday. It has not been revealed what charge he will plead guilty to is or whether there is a plea agreement involved.

Haskell, 23, Michael Jacques, 25, and Thomas Gleason Jr. 22, were charged in connection with a blaze that destroyed the Macedonia Church of God in Christ on November 5, 2008, just hours after President Obama was elected. All three men were arrested in January 2009 based on information provided by an informant.

The defendants allegedly confessed that they entered the church, which was under construction at the time, through a side window and used about five gallons of gas to douse the structure on the outside and the inside. Three firefighters sustained minor injuries as they attempted to put out the blaze.

Gleason and Jacques have pleaded not guilty to charges of damaging religious property because of race, color, or ethnic characteristics, civil rights violations, and using fire to commit a felony. Their criminal defense lawyer attempted to get their confessions tossed out as evidence on the grounds that law enforcement officials allegedly threatened and bullied the two men during hours of interrogation but a judge denied that motion. Haskell, who is facing lesser criminal charges, did not take part in the suppression hearings.

Guilty plea expected in Mass. black church arson, AP, June 13, 2010
Tipster led authorities to 3 men charged with setting Macedonia Church of God in Christ on fire hours after President Obama elected, court testimony indicates, MassLive, May 26, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Post-election church arson at predominantly black parish probed as possible hate crime, MassLive, November 5, 2008
Federal Crimes, Cornell University Law School Continue reading

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Last week, the Boston legal community had alittle excitement which spread from Capitol Hill to the United States District Court. That’s right, the federal one.

Many people are still debating it and question whether it should have happened. As for me, although I had not had a chance to blog on it yet, I was interviewed on WBZ radio (1030 on your a.m. dial). That interview, incidently, can be found here.

In case you had not heard, former state Senator. Dianne Wilkerson pleaded guilty to eight counts of attempted extortion and now faces up to four years in jail when she’s sentenced this fall.

Ms. Wilkerson had been arrested in October 2008, prior to leaving the State House office she held for six terms, on indictments alleging she pocketed $23,500 in bribes between 2002 and 2008, including $1,000 she was photographed stuffing in her bra at an upscale Beacon Hill restaurant.

The Roxbury Democrat was to go on trial June 21. Thinking better of it as time grew shorter, she came to an agreement with the federal prosecutors and, last week, she pleaded guilty.
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It has often occurred to me during my years as a Boston area criminal defense attorney that, once one abolishes the presumption of innocence, many efforts on the part of law enforcement become much easier.

It’s called being for “law and order” as opposed to “soft on crime” and is generally encouraged by society. Of course, it is antithetical to the United States Constitution and other laws of our country (not to mention the spirit behind them), but that’s simply a nasty nuance.

Who looks at nuances anyway?

Anyway, I have often indicated in these blogs that, while we still give lip service to the presumption of innocence, we generally accept the existing assumption of guilt.

Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis has announced that the Boston Police Department is now pursuing a new approach in finding alleged gang members. In this case, the department has released photographs of 10 unidentified young men because Commissioner Davis believes that the photographed gentlemen should be “shamed” for allegedly belonging to a gang that he contends bears responsibility for the death of a 14-year-old boy.

“We are doing this because we believe the community can play a role in making the individuals who are responsible for the execution of a 14-year-old boy outcasts in their own neighborhood,” Davis said in a telephone interview.
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As a Boston-area criminal defense attorney, I face many “There but for the grace of G-d go I” moments. As I have often discussed in these postings, I am constantly presented with lives that have been ruined by very bad moments. Such moments can change an otherwise on-track life into something of a living nightmare. Some people choose such moments on a regular basis. For others, dealing with the debris of one such moment is enough to last a life-time.

Last week, I side-stepped one such moment.

I was appearing on a murder case at Suffolk Superior Court which involved a shooting. As it turned out, the next door session had a murder trial of its own in which the jury was deliberating. Ironically, the subject matter of that case was related to my case. I waited awhile in case the verdict came, but it did not.

It came the next day instead. I wasn’t there, but I learned in the papers that the verdicts were guilty. But, as it turned out, the verdicts were the least of the excitement the court experienced.

Moments after the defendants were denounced by the deceased’s family for their “animalistic” actions in a victim impact statement, the courtroom exploded into a melee between said victims and families of the four men convicted of murdering the 16-year-old on a Dorchester street in 2007.

After being given the mandatory sentence for second-degree murder (life with the possibility of parole after serving 15 years) one of the convicted lads protested his innocence,

The clerk then announced that the men were sentenced to prison for their “natural life.”
One of the defendants’ relatives shouted out, “What do you mean ‘natural life?’ ”
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