Deal, et al. v. Commissioner of Correction (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-180-17)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports.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-12246 TIMOTHY DEAL & another[1] vs. COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTION. Suffolk. April 3, 2017. – November 9, 2017. Present: Gants, C.J., Lenk, Hines, Lowy, Budd, & Cypher, JJ.[2] Commissioner of Correction. Due Process of Law, Prison classification proceedings. Imprisonment, Reclassification of prisoner. Youthful Offender Act. Civil action commenced in the Supreme Judicial Court for the county of Suffolk on October 26, 2016. The case was reported by Botsford, J. Barbara Kaban for the petitioner. Benjamin H. Keehn, Committee for Public Counsel Services (Dulcineia Goncalves, Committee for Public Counsel Services, also present) for the intervener. Charles W. Anderson, Jr., for the respondent. James R. Pingeon, for Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts, amicus curiae, submitted a brief. BUDD, J. The Department of Correction (department) has adopted procedures to determine, on a periodic basis, the security classification of every inmate, including juvenile homicide offenders.[3] Approximately one year ago we examined the department’s then procedure used to classify juvenile homicide offenders, and concluded that, as pertaining to that cohort, the procedure violated G. L. c. 119, § 72B, as amended by St. 2014, c. 189, § 2, which prohibits the department from categorically barring juvenile homicide offenders from being placed in minimum security facilities. See Deal v. Commissioner of Correction, 475 Mass. 307, 312 (2016) (Deal I). The department has since developed a modified process for classifying juvenile homicide offenders, which the petitioner and intervener in this case (collectively, petitioners) — juvenile homicide offenders who also were petitioners in Deal I — continue to challenge. Applying our holding in Deal I to these updated procedures, we conclude that the department still falls short of the requirements of § 72B. Given that the department continues to block the majority of objectively qualifying juvenile homicide offenders from placement in a minimum security facility, its written explanations for doing so do not go far enough to ensure that the classification procedure is actually individualized and that no juvenile homicide offender is categorically barred from classification to a minimum security facility. We also conclude that the department must make a recording of the initial classification hearing and make that recording (or a transcription of that recording) available at any subsequent stage of review so that the final classification decision may include the same level […]
Categories: News Tags: 1018017, Commissioner, Correction, Deal, Lawyers, Weekly
Deal, et al. v. Commissioner of Correction, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-135-16)
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-12053 TIMOTHY DEAL & others[1] vs. COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTION & another.[2] Suffolk. May 3, 2016. – August 25, 2016. Present: Gants, C.J., Spina, Cordy, Botsford, Duffly, Lenk, & Hines, JJ.[3] Commissioner of Correction. Constitutional Law, Sentence, Parole. Due Process of Law, Sentence, Parole, Prison classification proceedings. Imprisonment, Reclassification of prisoner. Parole. Youthful Offender Act. Practice, Criminal, Sentence, Parole. Civil action commenced in the Supreme Judicial Court for the county of Suffolk on July 14, 2015. The case was reported by Botsford, J. Barbara Kaban (Benjamin H. Keehn, Committee for Public Counsel Services, & James W. Rosseel with her) for the petitioners. Charles Anderson, Jr., for the respondents. David J. Apfel & Eileen L. Morrison, for American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts & others, amici curiae, submitted a brief. CORDY, J. This case is before us on the reservation and report of the single justice. The petitioners, Timothy Deal, Siegfried Golston, and Jeffrey Roberio, are juvenile homicide offenders[4] who are serving mandatory indeterminate life sentences and who have a constitutional right to a “meaningful opportunity to obtain release based on demonstrated maturity and rehabilitation.” Diatchenko v. District Attorney for the Suffolk Dist., 466 Mass. 655, 674 (2013) (Diatchenko I), quoting Graham v. Florida, 560 U.S. 48, 75 (2010). This right also extends to juveniles convicted of murder in the second degree. See Diatchenko v. District Attorney for the Suffolk Dist., 471 Mass. 12, 32 (2015) (Diatchenko II). This case concerns the manner in which juvenile homicide offenders are classified and placed in Department of Correction (department) facilities. The issue before us is whether the department’s practice of using “discretionary override codes” to block qualifying juvenile homicide offenders from placement in a minimum security facility unless and until the individual has received a positive parole vote violates (1) G. L. c. 119, § 72B, as amended by St. 2014, c. 189, § 2; or (2) their right to a meaningful opportunity to obtain release based on demonstrated maturity and rehabilitation under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, arts. 12 and 26 of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights, or both Constitutions. We conclude that the department’s current classification practice violates G. L. c. 119, § 72B, as amended by St. 2014, c. 189, § 2, because the department’s failure to consider a juvenile homicide offender’s suitability […]
Categories: News Tags: 1013516, Commissioner, Correction, Deal, Lawyers, Weekly
Police Nab Two for Alleged Drug Deal on Newland Street
The following information was supplied by the Boston Police Department. Charges listed do not indicate convictions. Police arrested two Boston men on Saturday for a drug deal in the South End allegedly witnessed by police. Police said they had been patrolling the Tremont Street and Massachusetts Avenue areas when around 10 p.m., they noticed two men standing near Tremont Street and Rutland Square. Police said both men were looking around nervously in different directions, walking up and down Newland Street and acting suspicious. As officers continued to watch, they said one of the men met up with a third man near West Newton Street. Police said they saw money and a small bag exchange hands. Officers arrested Mathew Reese of 1046 Thorn Street, Mattapan and XXX XXX of XX Symphony Road and charged both with possession of a Class B substance. SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
Boston Police Disrupt Alleged Men’s Room Drug Deal
The following information was supplied by the Boston Police Department. Charges listed do not indicate a conviction. A call for suspicious activity at Boston Medical Center lead to the arrest of a South End man for drug possession on Friday. Boston Police Officers responded to a report of a suspicious circumstance on the 7th floor of 725 Albany Street on February 22 around 10:45 a.m. While conducting a routine patrol of 725 Albany Street, an officer reported he witnessed a man in a handicapped bathroom stall hand something to a man outside. The men denied that any transaction took place. The officer reported that both men looked panicked. The officer conducted a query and found that one of the men was wanted on a warrant out of Brighton District Court. Officers placed the suspect in handcuffs and took him to the holding cell at Boston University Medical Campus. Boston Police transferred the suspect to the District Four Police Station at During the booking process, the officers found two bags in his possession, one with brown powder believed to be herion and the other with white powder believed to be cocaine. Giovanny Perdomo of 444 Harrison Avenue was charged with possession of a Class A substance and possession of a Class B substance. SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
City Taking Precautions to Deal with Serious Winter Storm
With a borderline “historic” blizzard approaching the city, Boston officials have already begun to make arrangements for snow removal, power outages and emergecy rescue. With the latest forecasts predicting 1-2 feet of snow to fall in Boston from Friday afternoon through Saturday morning, city departments are already preparing. More than 600 pieces of equipment and snowplows will be active on city streets by early Friday morning, according to the mayor’s office. The Office of Emergency Management is coordinating with city agencies, NSTAR, and the Weather Service, Boston Police, Fire, and Emergency Medical Services have arranged for additional staffing, and police will be stationed at major intersections around the city. The Inspectional Services Department will double its shifts of inspectors working this weekend to deal with anticipated power and heat outages. “This is a very serious storm that is developing,” Mayor Menino said. “Safety is our number one priority, and my Snow Team will continue to monitor the situation so that Boston is ready for whatever comes our way.” The city is asking commuters to pay close attention to snow-related announcements in the next 24 hours in the event that the city urges them not drive their vehicles into the city on Friday. If the weather projections hold, the priority will be on giving Public Works crews room to work to plow the snow, the city said in a statement. The Boston Fire Department is also urging residents to be careful if space heaters are used during the cold weather. The city has experienced several recent fires due to improperly used or malfunctioning space heaters. The Mayor’s 24-Hour Hotline will plan to have additional staff on-hand during the storm, and residents with weather-related questions or concerns, including down power lines, down trees or icy conditions, should call 617-635-4500. More Snow Coverage: South End Storm Center How Boston Cleans Up a Snowstorm – And What You Can Do MBTA: How to Know What’s Running During a Snowstorm NSTAR Offers Tips to on How to Prepare for Snowstorm Weekend Storm Alert Upgraded to Blizzard Watch Storm Could Drop up to 18 Inches on Boston Boston Snow Emergency Parking in the South End Boston Remembers the Blizzard of 1978 SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
Police Disrupt Alleged Drug Deal on Northampton Street
The following information was supplied by the Boston Police Department. Charges listed do not indicate convictions. Boston Police arrested a man for allegedly selling heroin on Northampton Street on Monday. While on patrol in the area of Northampton street, police said they observed a white female wearing a brown winter coat head into 35 Northampton St. and meet up with a white male in the hallway of the building. Officers exited their unmarked car and walked into the building and waited for the elevator with the woman and the suspect. Officers reportedly determined that the suspect had the physical appearance of a drug user. When the elevator arrived, all parties entered. The woman and the suspect got out at the 10th floor, where they were met by a Hispanic male in the hallway. Officers exited the elevator and said they observed a hand-to-hand transaction between the man in the hallway and the woman. The suspect handed the Hispanic man some cash and he handed the suspect a bag of tan powder believed to be heroin. As soon as the transaction took place, the detective knocked the bag out of the suspect’s hands, police said. The detective announced that he was with the police and a brief struggle ensued, according to the report. The suspect went for the bag on the floor while the woman and the Hispanic male fled. The man dropped $ 30 on the floor while fleeing, which the suspect gave him for the bag. Officers arrested Michael McCole of 794 Mass Ave., and charged him with possession of a Class A substance. SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch