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After a week nursing an eye issue, I am back to my Boston Criminal Law Blog…although it may take another week or two to go daily. I plan to blog Monday, Wednesday and Friday this week. Hopefully, the other “mini-blogs” are keeping you informed, if not entertained, in the meantime. However, in my absence, I see (to the extent that my temporary eye patch will allow) that not very much has changed. College campuses are still the scenes of crime, shootings continue and police officers continue to assault and be assaulted.

Let’s take Cambridge’s Harvard University for example.

Kai Robert Kruger, 21 (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) ran into a bit of trouble on Harvard’s campus this weekend. According to authorities, he was arrested after firing a gun at a police officer and attempting to rob three Harvard University freshmen at gunpoint.

Apparently, the Defendant had stolen the students’ wallets, credit cards and cell phones before the officer’s arrival.

But then, his luck began to turn.
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Someone looted money from collection boxes and smashed a stained glass window at Roxbury’s Mission Church this weekend. Church personnel reported the theft on Sunday morning. Police told the Boston Globe that between $200 and $300 could have been in the collection boxes.

The church, formally named Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, is well-known for being the site of the late Senator Edward Kennedy’s funeral. The stained glass window that was smashed was estimated to be more than 100 years old.

Police are investigating the crime.

Source: The Boston Globe, Thieves loot poor boxes at Roxbury’s Mission Church

If you have been charged or think that you are being investigated for a theft crime in Massachusetts, it is important to contact a criminal defense lawyer. There is a wide range of potential punishments for Massachusetts theft crimes, and the penalties can be very serious.
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A speeding car near 1400 Tremont St. in Roxbury killed a man riding a scooter on Sunday night. The vehicle then kept going and headed toward Brigham Circle.

The man was pronounced dead at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He has not been indentified awaiting notification to his family.

The police have not yet released a description of the vehicle.

Source: The Boston Globe, Scooter driver killed in Roxbury hit and run

When a person dies because of a hit and run, the driver will be charged with a felony. The punishments can be very serious. If you have been involved in a hit and run, it is strongly recommended that you immediately contact an attorney with hit and run experience.
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Two Newton teenagers, 17-year-old Benjamin Peirce and 18-year-old Shaquan Jacobs, were arraigned Wednesday in Superior Court in Woburn on murder, armed robbery and firearms charges. Both pleaded not guilty.

The charges arose from the September fatal shooting of Adam Coveney, a 29-year-old Waltham man. Prosecutors allege that the teens arranged a drug deal with Coveney to rob him of Percocet tablets. Aside from Peirce and Jacobs, two others were allegedly involved. Daniel Louis, a 21-year-old West Roxbury man, and Wallace Duarte, a 17-year-old from Waltham, were arraigned Thursday. Louis faces murder, armed robbery and firearms charges. Duarte was charged as an accessory after the fact to murder.

As you would guess, murder is the most serious of all crimes and is punishable by up to life in prison without the possibility of parole. A conviction for armed robbery could also carry a life prison sentence. The punishment for conviction of firearms charges varies but the penalty is often increased when the gun was used in connection with a robbery. Accessory after the fact is punishable by up to 7 years in the state prison. Facing these penalties, the stakes could not be higher for these young men.

The Boston Globe: Newton teens arraigned in Waltham slaying
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Police have charged 45-year-old Joseph Ghella of South Boston in the carjacking of a limo in front of a church where a wedding was taking place. The alleged carjacking occurred last Saturday in Dorchester around 1:45 p.m.

A man who was allegedly armed with a hammer forced the driver and six bridesmaids out of the limo. A pastor from the church told the Boston Globe that the bride and groom were not aware of the incident and that the bridesmaids remained calm so as not to ruin the wedding. Ghella was also charged in a Saturday break-in that allegedly occurred prior to the carjacking.

Ghella will be arraigned on charges of breaking and entering, assault with a dangerous weapon, larceny of a motor vehicle, and assault and battery.

The Boston Globe: Police charge suspect in wedding limo carjacking

Carjacking is punishable by up to 15 years in state prison. Carjacking while armed with a dangerous weapon is punishable by up to 20 years in state prison. To be convicted of carjacking, the prosecutor has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant assaulted, maimed, confined or put a person in fear for the purpose of stealing a motor vehicle and with the intent to steal it.
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An armed robbery occurred early Thursday in the famous Harvard Yard. A man who was unaffiliated with Harvard University was robbed at gunpoint outside of a freshman dorm around 2:45 a.m. He gave his wallet to the robber and fled from the area. The robber was described as a thin, 5-foot-9 Hispanic male in his 20s.

In Massachusetts, armed robbery is governed by Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 17. The law makes armed robbery punishable by up to life in prison. If the robber was masked or wearing a disguise at the time of the robbery, there is a 5-year mandatory minimum sentence.

Usually in robbery cases, the critical issue will be the identity of the alleged robber. It is important to contact a lawyer if you suspect that you are being investigated in connection with a robbery.

The Boston Globe: Armed robbery reported in Harvard Yard

Call the Experienced Criminal Defense Attorneys of Altman & Altman LLP Today at (617) 492 3000 or (800) 481 6199

At Altman & Altman LLP, our criminal defense lawyers have more than four decades of experience. We will gladly answer any questions that you might have in a free initial consultation.
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Suffolk County prosecutors told the Boston Globe that two Everett women, 31-year-old Sharnell Donahue and 51-year-old Diane Tuck, have been charged with armed assault with intent to murder and armed assault with intent to rob in connection with a Winthrop stabbing.

Donahue and Tuck were arraigned today in East Boston District Court. The alleged stabbing occurred on Forrest Street around 7:40 p.m. on Thursday. The victim was a 44-year-old woman. She is in critical condition at Massachusetts General Hospital. Both Winthrop and state police are investigating the incident.

Assault with intent to rob or murder is punishable by up to 20 years in the state prison. If armed with a firearm, shotgun, rifle, machine gun or assault weapon, it is punishable by a 5-year mandatory minimum in state prison. Given the severity of these potential punishments, it is important to call an attorney if you are facing charges of assault with intent to rob or murder.

The Boston Globe: Two Everett women charged in Winthrop stabbing
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According to Column J. Flaherty’s Boston criminal defense attorney, his 62-year-old client was acting in self-defense when he stabbed another man with a folding knife. Flaherty, who pleaded not guilty to Massachusetts assault and battery with a dangerous weapon over the Dorchester stabbing, was released on $500 cash bail.

Suffolk prosecutors say that Flaherty and a North Reading man were involved in a fender bender on Monday afternoon. After the two of them of them pulled over to exchange information, a third driver, another Quincy man named Michael J. McDevitt, also pulled over his auto. McDevitt, who had gotten stuck in traffic because of the collision, reportedly got out of his car, went to Flaherty’s auto, opened the vehicle door, and started hitting him. Flaherty then pulled out his folding knife and stabbed McDevitt in the arm. The latter is also expected to face criminal charges.

Massachusetts Assault and Battery with a Dangerous Weapon
This is a serious crime and one that comes with either a 2 ½ year maximum sentence in a county house of corrections if the case is heard in district court or a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison if the case goes to superior court. However, depending on other factors, such as whether the victim was pregnant or had a restraining order against the defendant or a massive injury was involved, the sentence upon conviction could be lengthier.

To convict someone of this crime, the district attorney has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant intentionally touched someone without just cause or right and that a dangerous weapon was used to make contact. A dangerous weapon can be any object or instrument that was used in a potentially dangerous manner or any weapon that is considered inherently dangerous regardless of whether or not it was used in a dangerous fashion.

Quincy man stabbed in road rage incident allegedly threw punch first, Patriot Ledger, November 9, 2010
Man was ‘scared to death’ during Dorchester road rage incident, his attorney says, Boston.com, November 9, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Massachusetts General Laws

Assault and Battery, Boston Criminal Lawyer Blog Continue reading

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The defense attorney for Eva Flores, the 18-year-old charged with throwing her newborn baby out of the window of her East Boston home, said that Flores did so because she was raped and the rapist threatened to kill her and her family.

Flores has pleaded not guilty to various charges including assault and battery of a child under 14 with injuries and reckless endangerment of a child in Suffolk Superior Court. The Suffolk ADA declined to address the attorney’s explanation for his client’s actions.

The police report in which Flores’ arrest is summarized says that on September 20 around 10:05 p.m. neighbors heard crying, looked out the window and saw the baby face down in an alley. The neighbors picked up the baby and alerted the police.

Flores, an El Salvador native, is being held on immigration detainer and could be deported.
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Boston’s homicide toll continued to rise as two were killed over the weekend. Thomas Whitley, a 30-year old Roxbury man, and an unidentified teenager were killed, marking the 62nd and 63rd homicides this year. At this time last year, the homicide toll was 43.

Whitley, a father of four, was stabbed on Saturday night on 60 Dearborn Street. He was later pronounced dead at Boston Medical Center. Witnesses told the Boston Globe that Whitley and another man went into Dearborn Liquors together where they got into a fight that continued out to the street. The call to police first came in as an attempted robbery.

The teenager was shot on Mascot Street in Mattapan on Sunday morning. He too was pronounced dead at Boston Medical Center.

With this ongoing violence, the pressure will continue to mount on law enforcement. When that happens, the pressure on you also grows. Pressure from superior officers, prosecutors, and law enforcement politicians will affect police investigations and feed their fear and their “us vs. them” attitude.
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