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After reading the latest supplement to the Newsweek stories on bullying, this time including only one sentence of mine, I looked to the day’s news.

As usual, I was given another example of adults demonstrating the kind of civility which would make most kids blush. This time, the topic was funding in the criminal justice system. It was the angry, yet smugly calm, prosecutors vs. The shrill and angry defense attorneys.

The scene was a staid State House press conference inside what the law enforcement side referred to as “hallowed halls”. Just the place to argue about money. Of course, the place was so hallowed because of a new nation being birthed because of governmental tyranny.

Kind of ironic that it was the government seeking more funding to battle the court appointed lawyers for the indigent citizen who was blessing the hall.

In the criminal justice system, reality tends to mock itself Continue reading

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Yesterday morning, as I was driving to the Boston Municipal Court, I received a text message from Altman & Altman’s fearless leader, Attorney Steven Altman.

Uh-oh. What to do when the big man summons?

Well, in this case, what I did was…nothing. In case you have not been paying attention, there is a new law in town which outlaws, among other things, texting while driving. Once a frequent offender, I have embraced the new law as a way to drop this bad and dangerous habit.

What’s that? You think the new law is stupid and over-emphasizes the precariousness of surviving driving on today’s Massachusetts roads? Hmm…maybe you are right. Let me think on that as I peruse yesterday’s news stories.

Well, first I see why my arrival at the BMC was so late yesterday. I drive on Route 107.

Boy, was there a tie-up!

Apparently, A 61-year-old Peabody woman died thereabouts after a front wheel came loose on her car, the vehicle went out of control, careening into the Saugus River near the Revere-Saugus line, authorities said.
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The teen mother accused of throwing her newborn 17 feet into an East Boston Alley after giving birth to him in a bathtub on September 20 has been arraigned. In East Boston District Court on Tuesday, 18-year-old Eva Flores pleaded not guilty to the charges of Massachusetts assault and battery of a child under 14 with injuries and reckless endangerment of a child.

Flores, who is not only an East Boston High School student but also an illegal alien from El Salvador, is being held on a federal immigration detainee. Bail has been set at $1,500.

According to prosecutors, Flores was trying to keep her pregnancy a secret. She gave birth at the apartment where she lived with her stepbrother and mother. The baby boy, whose name is Angel, was severely injured during the fall. His injured include brain swelling, brain seizures, brain lesions, hypothermia, facial and head abrasions, seizures, hemorrhaging, and bleeding at multiple points. Some of his injuries are likely permanent.

Flores has said that she wants to keep her child. Angel is now in the custody of child welfare authorities but continues to stay at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Prosecutor Leora Joseph contends that Flores tried to conceal her actions by taking off the bathtub drain, shoving her umbilical cord down it, and then putting the grate back on. She was recently evaluated at Massachusetts General Hospital and a psychiatrist has been monitoring her since the incident.

Teen mom arraigned after baby thrown in trash alley, Boston Herald, October 13, 2010
East Boston teen pleads not guilty to charges she threw baby out the window, Boston.com, October 12, 2010

Related Web Resource:
Crimes against the person, Massachusetts General Laws Continue reading

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The federal white collar trial for City Councilor Chuck Turner is set to begin today. Already, the human drama and strategic dances have begun and nary a juror has been selected (or rejected) yet.

And, actually, that’s the way it should be.

The trend is for courts to try to avoid any last minute surprises during the trial. The issue presenting itself here is regarding one of the main witnesses against Mr. Turner.

As you may recall, charges were brought against Turner and, in a related matter, Diane Wilkerson for corruption. For his part, Turner is accused with accepting a bribe. In fact, the United States Attorney claims that there is video showing Turner accepting the bribe from Ron Wilburn, a businessman (hereinafter, the “Witness”) trying to get a liquor license. During the investigation, the F.B.I. claims that Turner lied to them about the events.

The Witness is now apparently claiming his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination, trying to refuse to testify. This, of course, means that he has broken any agreement he might have had with the prosecution and may be looking at imprisonment himself.

No word from Ms. Wilkerson who has already pleaded guilty, but who’s sentencing is still pending.
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Police in Springfield have Impressed criminal justice onlookers this past weekend. They went out a-hunting and made 50 arrests which should keep the local district court humming for a day or so. These arrests were for the most serious crimes, of course. They range from drug possession to prostitution all the way up to drag racing!

According to Boston.com, there were so many people arrested between Friday and Saturday mornings that the police ran out of jail cells.

No, this was in no way accidental. Law enforcement did not happen to “get lucky” during said period and happen upon a sudden crime wave. No, this was planned. As we have seen so many times, when confidence seems to wane in the local constabulary, something must be done to remind the rest of us that the thin blue line is alive, well and protecting us from evil.

And so it was that 20 extra police officers were put on the streets so that a new criminal sweep with a pretty name could be performed. This time, it was “Operation Blue Heat”. It was said to target gang members, drug dealers and…worst of all…the sex trade. Of course, this type of sweep generally includes ( or is primarily comprised of) alleged prostitutes. They seem to offer little resistance and give the resulting media exposure more “bang for its buck”.

No pun intended.
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Given how this country was wrestled from the American Indian so long ago, it seems appropriate to return to the topic of bullying today on Columbus Day.

As you know, schools are back in session. This subject has hit the headlines anew.

If you are you waiting to hear that the efforts of our criminal justice leaders last year have paid off and so the situation is improved…I am sorry that I will have to disappoint you.

It didn’t. It hasn’t.

Perhaps this year, if we follow the same path as last year, we can impose the death penalty or bring back the stockades to battle the problem…!

While, regrettably, my responsibilities to clients made it impossible to live up to my blogging duties (sorry about that) last week, my opinions and I have still been around.

Particularly on the subject of bullying.

As you know, I have been rather critical of our political/law enforcement approach to the problem. Some people, after either seeing my recent television appearance , or the October 11th issue of Newsweek Magazine, in which I was quoted on the subject, may walk away with the idea that I am simply in favor of bullying..

I’m not, by the way.
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Rutgers University freshman Dharun Ravi and Molly Wei say that they did not bully Tyler Clementi. Ravi and Wei have been charged with third- and fourth- degree invasion of privacy in the death of Clementi, who committed suicide by jumping into the Hudson River.

Clementi and Ravi were roommates. Ravi and Wei are accused of filming Clementi while he was having a “sexual encounter” with another male in his dorm room and streaming the video live online. Ravi allegedly tweeted that he was using a webcam to film the incidents.

On September 22, 2010, a day after Ravi allegedly invited people on Twitter to video chat him while he was recording Clementi, the latter posted a message on his Facebook page noting that he was going to jump off the George Washington bridge.

If convicted of the invasion of privacy charges in the internet voyeurism case, Ravi and Wei could spend up to five years in prison. Prosecutors are continuing to investigate the college campus crime to determine whether to file a bias charge or charge them with committing a hate crime. Meantime, Wei’s criminal defense team has said that she is innocent of the cyber crime and that her reputation has been “unjustly tarnished” and “maligned by unfounded attacks on her character.”

On October 4, Middlesex County Prosecutor Bruce Kaplan said that there may not be sufficient evidence to upgrade the charges against Wei and Ravi to a hate crime. If the charges are upgraded to a second-degree bias crime and they are convicted, they could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison.

Evidence may not be enough to upgrade charges against Rutgers students Dharun Ravi, Molly Wei, NJ Real-Times News, October 4, 2010
Rutgers Students Investigated After Death of Classmate Break Their Silence, ABC News, October 6, 2010
Private Moment Made Public, Then a Fatal Jump, NY Times, September 29, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Cyber Crime, Justice.gov
Hate Crimes, FBI
Rutgers
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Kimani W., the Dorchester gentleman whom the police have arrested in connection with the four murders in Mattapan (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) is on his way to court. He will be charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition, marijuana and receiving a stolen motor vehicle.

Not murder. And not Boston.

Yet.

The Defendant was found in Manchester, New Hampshire. “We will begin the extradition process as soon as possible,” said Jake Wark, spokesman for Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley.

As you will recall, five people were found shot on Woolson Street in Mattapan a week ago. Four of the victims, including a 2-year-old toddler, died. A fifth victim is clinging to life in a Boston hospital.
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Yesterday, we discussed whether an investigating officer’s failure to read a suspect in custody his or her Miranda Rights (hereinafter, the “Rights”), means that the case against said suspect must be dismissed.

The answer, in most cases, is no.

The remedy is to suppress the statement so that the Commonwealth may not use it against the suspect at trial. However, this is not as simple as one might imagine. The question becomes what is a “custodial interrogation”. Let’s look at three scenarios.

1) Duncan Drugdealer is at home when the police arrive with a search warrant. They tell him to sit down while they search the place. All of a sudden, as the officers are going upstairs, he yells out, “Hey, that coke in the bedroom ain’t mine!”

2) Virginia Victim stands in Boston’s Government Center, screaming that she her purse has just been stolen. The police see her and then see Alfred Assault running away from her, carrying a woman’s purse. The officers know Alfred and he very rarely carries a purse. So they chase him. As they catch up to him, he turns around and says, “It ain’t the old lady’s purse, man!”

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This is a question I encounter many times from clients. People do not seem to understand the rules regarding what rights the police must read them at the time of arrest, or around that time, and what happens if they do not. The rules are the same here in Massachusetts, whether the case be for a felony like murder or a misdemeanor like shoplifting.

File this one under the drawer marked “Trying To Outsmart The Investigating Officer” in the “What Not To Do” cabinet.

For those of you who are not sure, the so-called “Miranda Rights” (hereinafter, the “Rights”) originated from a United States Supreme Court ruling years ago. The aim was to ensure that folks who were interrogated by the police understood their rights not to talk to the police while in custody. In fact, it also was to make sure that said suspects were aware of what would likely happen to any statements made during said interrogation.

We have all seen the Rights in action on television and in the movies. They advise the suspect, in fairly routine words that he/she has the right to remain silent and the right to have an attorney present, that if they cannot afford an attorney then one will be appointed and that anything he/she says will probably be used against them in court.
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