Commonwealth v. Hernandez (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-205-15)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports. If you find a typographical error or other formal error, please notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, 1 Pemberton Square, Suite 2500, Boston, MA, 02108-1750; (617) 557-1030; SJCReporter@sjc.state.ma.us SJC-11574 COMMONWEALTH vs. ARIEL HERNANDEZ. Middlesex. October 9, 2015. – December 29, 2015. Present: Gants, C.J., Spina, Botsford, Lenk, & Hines, JJ. Homicide. Robbery. Armed Home Invasion. Home Invasion. Firearms. Felony-Murder Rule. Evidence, Firearm. Constitutional Law, Search and seizure, Probable cause. Probable Cause. Search and Seizure, Motor vehicle, Probable cause, Inevitable discovery. Practice, Criminal, Capital case, Motion to suppress, Severance, Trial of indictments together. Indictments found and returned in the Superior Court Department on December 10 and 22, 2009. A pretrial motion to suppress evidence was heard by Thomas P. Billings, J., and the cases were tried before him. Dana Alan Curhan for the defendant. Casey E. Silvia, Assistant District Attorney, for the Commonwealth. HINES, J. Based on an armed robbery that occurred during the evening of October 22, 2009, and an armed home invasion and double murder that occurred several hours later, a jury convicted on indictments charging the defendant with two counts of armed robbery; two counts of murder in the first degree on the theory of felony-murder (with armed home invasion and attempted armed robbery as the underlying felonies); and one count each of home invasion, unlawful possession of ammunition, and possessing a firearm without a license. The defendant’s trial was joined with the trials of two codefendants, cousins Karon and Jamal McDougal,[1] on each of their indictments charging two counts of felony murder and one count of home invasion, and with Jamal’s indictments for firearms offenses. Karon and Jamal were acquitted of all charges. On appeal, the defendant argues (1) error in the denial of his motion to suppress the firearm used in the armed robbery and murders and (2) error in the joinder of trial with his codefendants and in the joinder of the armed robbery charges and charges relating to the home invasion. We affirm the order denying the defendant’s motion to suppress as well as the defendant’s convictions, and we discern no basis to exercise our authority pursuant to G. L. c. 278, § 33E. 1. Motion to suppress. a. Background. Prior to trial, the defendant filed a motion to suppress the firearm evidence, claiming, on State and Federal constitutional grounds, that police lacked probable cause for the warrantless search and the search exceeded the bounds of a proper inventory search. The […]