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In Massachusetts, a former Massachusetts National Guard sergeant is combating DWI charges involving a Concord bicycle accident that injured two cyclists. Adam Lamothe, 26, was going to plead guilty to the criminal charges of two counts of conduct after an accident and aggravated driving while intoxicated, but now he’s retained a new Massachusetts criminal defense law firm and he wants to question the victims’ credibility.

The deadly Concord DWI accident occurred in August 17, 2007 when they were struck by Lamothe’s motor vehicle on South Main Street early in the morning. The two bicyclists, Daniel Gallant and Adam Boyer, got hurt. Boyer, who sustained a traumatic brain injury and a fractured skull, almost died. Meantime, Lamothe didn’t stop the car after striking the two men. When police apprehended him, he had a .17% blood alcohol level.

It turns out, however, that both men have criminal records. Now, Lamothe’s attorney wants to use these past convictions, which are admissible at trial, to help jurors determine whether the victims can be trusted to tell the truth. Gallant, who was convicted of child sexual assault, served 10 years in prison. Lamothe’s defense team believes this is important, because Gallant tried to conceal some of this history during a pretrial deposition. Boyer, was convicted in 1998 of physical assault.

It will be up to a judge to determine whether revealing the details of the men’s criminal records will outweigh any unfair prejudice or mislead a jury. Merimack County prosecutor Wayne Coull wants to keep the two men’s criminal histories out of court. He doesn’t believe their credibility should be an issue for this case because the two men weren’t even aware that they’d been hit by a motor vehicle until they recovered from their injuries.

Combating Criminal Charges
If you have been charged with a Massachusetts crime, you are entitled to representation by a Boston criminal defense law firm that will exhaust every avenue of defense on your behalf. Situations and circumstances are not alway what they seem and having an experienced criminal defense lawyer by your side is the best way to make sure that you don’t get lost in the legal system and that there is someone fighting for you to ensure the best outcome possible for your case.

Cyclists’ past crimes may enter DWI trial, Concord Monitor, April 29, 2009
Driver Charged With DWI After Bicyclists Hit, WCVB, August 17, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Drunk Driving, Justia
Criminal Defense Lawyer, FAQ Continue reading

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Today, the daily Boston Criminal Lawyer Blog goes to Framingham…figuratively…where recent troubles seem to have taken place on both sides of the seriousness spectrum.

Let’s start with Adilson D., 37 (hereinafter, “Defendant 1”). He was displeased about a recent interaction with local police. So, while the rest of Massachusetts was focxussing on the weekend heat wave, he spent his early Sunday morning hours apparently repeatedly called 911 to voice his displeasure.

They did not appreciate the criticism.

Law enforcement arrived at Defendant 1’s home to arrest him, at approximately 5:47a.m., which happened, believe it or not, after a “brief struggle”, according to, Deputy Police Chief Craig Davis .

Defendant 1’s 911 complaint calls began at 4:30 a.m.. He said he was upset about being pulled over and that he had been abused by the police.

The 911 dispatcher told him to call the main phone line to make such a complaint, Davis said.

So, naturally, he continued to call 911 eight more times by 5:30 a.m.
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A north of Boston attorney has found herself on the chair most often occupied by her clients. At least, that is, in court. Otherwise, she is in custody, held without bail, for driving offenses.

Tracy T., 32, of Revere (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) is being held without bail on what the Commonwealth alleges to be her third drunk driving charge. Well, that was one reason.

The other reason, according to prosecutors, is that she gave false information to the patrolman who stopped her.

The alleged event took place in Marblehead last Thursday morning. The Defendant was pulled over by police. Upon questioning, she is said to have given the police a phony name, date of birth and a Social Security number that turned out to be that of an elderly man. She said she didn’t have her license on her, then told the officer that it was expired.

When police determined who she was, The Defendant became apologetic and then allegedly gave the kicker line, “You aren’t going to arrest me, are you? I can’t get arrested. I am an attorney,” according to police.

Given that her line of argument was not persuasive under the circumstances (which allegedly include her failing two of three field sobriety tests and then registering a .22, more than three times the legal limit, on a portable Breathalyzer, the answer was in the affirmative.
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As the rest of us in the Boston area were experiencing the upcoming summer heat, a few individuals were feeling heat of another kind, courtesy of Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone.

District Attorney Leone announced last week that a Malden Treasury employee and nine others have been indicted for allegedly embezzling more than $518,000 in city property tax receipts.

Gia D., 27, of Georgetown (hereinafter the “Defendant”), was charged by a Middlesex grand jury on one count of larceny over $250 and a separate count of conspiracy to commit larceny.

The Defendant and a co-defendant, Alan V., 32 of Malden (hereinafter, “Co-Defendant One”), had been arrested last November. Since then, however, the investigation has continued and has now resulted in indictments for the Defendant, Co-Defendant 1 and 8 others in the same alleged conspiracy.

As they were indicted by a grand jury, these are felony charges.

According to District Attorney Leone, none of those indicted, other than the Defendant, are Malden city employees.

The alleged white collar conspiracy involved funds that kept in the Malden Treasury that had come from property owners who had overpaid their property taxes. In 2006, Malden began publishing the list of residents who had overpaid their taxes so that the overpayments could be reclaimed.

Of course, the whole idea was that the funds would be reclaimed by the people who had overpaid. According to the Commonwealth, however, the Defendant and company thought they had a better idea.
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Attorney Sam’s Take: Welcome to the first posting of a new weekly feature on the daily Boston Criminal Lawyer Blog. Each Friday, I will post in this particular format, dealing specifically with an issue which people face every day in the criminal justice system.

THIS WEEK: WHAT EXACTLY IS AN “ARREST WARRANT”, HOW LONG IS IT VALID AND WHAT CAN YOU DO TO GET RID OF IT?

An arrest warrant is similar to a search warrant that you hear so much about on television and in the movies. You know the scene…the detective shows up on a murder suspect’s door and asks to come in.

The suspect sneers, “Where’s your warrant?”

The Detective waives a piece of paper and the suspect frowns and opens the door to let the detective in.

The search warrant is simply an order from the court allowing the police to search a particular place. There are all kinds of technical issues with search warrants, but that is basically all that they are. An arrest warrant is simply an order from the court allowing law enforcement to take the person named in the warrant into custody.

Normally, there are certain restrictions for when an officer can take someone into custody…in other words, arrest him. With the arrest warrant, nothing else is needed. The officer finds the suspect listed on the warrant and can arrest him on the spot.

So, what do you have to do wrong in order to get an arrest warrant issued against you?
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By now, you have probably heard of the gentleman who has allegedly chosen the name “Clark Rockefeller”. The Commonwealth says his real name, or part of it, is Christian K.G. We, however, will simply call him the “Defendant”.

He is facing charges in Boston for parental kidnapping. However, his attorney is arguing that it is too prejudicial to have the trial in the city and that the matter should be moved to western Massachusetts.

The reason?

The defense argues that, because of the extensive media coverage, the potential jury pool has been tainted to the extent that it is impossible for the Defendant to receive a fair trial.

The argument is based on a survey done for the defense which found that more than three-quarters of respondents in Suffolk County – where potential jurors would be culled – said they were aware of the case. Of those, roughly half said they believed he was guilty.

“That’s a staggeringly high figure, even for a high-profile case,” said the Defendant’s attorney.

The prosecutor, however, not to be outdone in his mathematical abilities, countered that the same poll found 52 percent of county residents had not formed an opinion.
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These have been big days for narcotics law enforcement specialists. State agencies as well as Boston’s various local FBI, ATF and DEA agents worked together to bring suspects to court and clients to lawyers.

Let’s take Pittsfield first. There, three daytime raids resulted in the seizure of approximately $35,000 worth of drugs as well as the alleged leader of the Bloods gang.

The hope is that the synchronized raids will bring an end to the violent crime problem that has been plaguing the area. The police chief said, “By following up in this investigation, it is our hope and expectation that we will come to a solution in some, if not all, of the violence that has plagued Pittsfield over the last several months.”

The raids were a result of an ongoing investigation by the Berkshire County Drug Task Force and the Pittsfield Police Department drug unit.

Meanwhile, a South Easton man was arrested on Massachusetts cocaine trafficking charges after police seized about $30,000 in cocaine and $9,000 cash in an undercover narcotics investigation headed by Foxboro Detective Thomas Kirrane and Sharon Detective Scott Leonard of the Norfolk County Anti-Crime Task Force.

Stephen K, 52, (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) who lives at the Easton Mobile Home Park on Route 138 in South Easton, was arrested last Wednesday in the Shaw’s supermarket parking lot at 760 South Main St. in Sharon, near the Foxboro line. When he was arrested the Defendant, who also has an address in Florida, had numerous bundles of cocaine with an estimated value of more than $2,000 and more than $2,300 in cash Continue reading

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The Supreme Court has issued a ruling that places limits on when police officers can search a suspect’s motor vehicle right after making an arrest if they don’t have a warrant. With their 5-4 decision, the justices determined that police must have a warrant to search the auto if the person is locked up in the cruiser and is not a threat to the officers. Warrantless searches, however, can still take place if the passenger compartment of the car was within reach of the suspect or there is reason to believe that there is evidence in the car pertaining to the crime that resulted in the arrest.

The decision supports an Arizona high court’s ruling in favor of a man whose car was searched while he was handcuffed and seated in the back of a police car. During the search, police discovered drugs in his vehicle.

Rodney Joseph Gant had been arrested for driving on a suspended license. While the trial court said the drug evidence could be used against him, the Arizona appeals courts overturned the convictions because the officers had already secured the scene and their lives weren’t in danger when they searched his car without a warrant-even though there was no need to worry that the evidence wouldn’t be preserved.

In the majority opinion, Justice John Paul Stevens said that there have been way too many cases involving people who have done nothing more than commit a traffic violation who have had their constitutional rights violated because of the way warrantless searches were conducted.

Justice Samuel Alito in his dissent, however, said the ruling turns over a police practice that allows the warrentless searches of cars right after an arrest, which can be important when it is not clear whether the person under arrest was able to get out evidence or a weapon from the vehicle. He says the new ruling also makes it hard for police to figure out when a motor vehicle is concealing criminal evidence.

Police instructors and prosecutors have expressed disappointment with the Supreme Court’s decision. Civil liberties groups, however, have maintained that police regularly invade people’s privacy when they conduct warrantless searches even though suspects hadn’t been able to access their motor vehicles.

Supreme Court limits warrantless vehicle searches, Boston.com/AP, April 21, 2009
Arizona v. Gant, Oyez.org

Related Web Resource:
The Constitution of the United States of America
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Over the years, as a Boston criminal defense attorney, I have come across what has become an “age old question”. The question is what are the limits of disciplining one’s own children. In days gone by, the answer was apparently “whatever works”.

Fortunately, those days are over. However, as with other types of Massachusetts domestic violence matters, the pendulum seems to have swung all the way in the opposite direction. Understand that I am not a believer of corporeal punishment and I do not engage in it with my kids. However, I have seen cases where criminal charges were brought because of one slap as a response outrageous behavior.

Where does the case of Amaurys G., 28, (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) of Lawrence, fall on the chart? You decide.

On Friday night, the Defendant was arrested and charged with Massachusetts assault and battery on his children. The kids’ behavior involved arguing over a toy car.

The Defendant’s solution?

Beating the two kids, ages 9 and 10, repeatedly with a phone charger cord and throwing a bag of oranges at his daughter.
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About an hour and a half west of Boston, there is a town called Holyoke. In Holyoke, Julius T., 29 (hereinafter, the “Defendant”) got arrested early evening on Tuesday. He is said to have assaulted a woman, kicked a police officer and thrown himself down a flight of stairs.

His story is not only of note because of his alleged rather unusual actions, but also because he is an example of how, in the System, one’s past always catches up.

The police were dispatched at 5:00 p.m. on an “unknown medical call”, according to Police Chief Anthony Scott. When they got there, the officers heard screaming from inside the address and people were gathered outside.

The officers entered and say they observed the Defendant at the top of the staircase yelling at someone inside a room.

The officers tried to calm the Defendant down. This attempt failed. So, they approached and handcuffed him after a brief struggle, according to police. The Defendant, however, continued to yell, scream and argue with others inside the residence. He apparently also told the officers that he was wanted in Florida, police said.

To help bring tranquility to the scene, another officer came to the bottom of the staircase and attempted to calm down a woman who was also yelling and screaming, according to police. Then, when Officers attempted to escort the Defendant outside, police say the Defendant allegedly threw himself down the stairs.
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