Commonwealth v. Moody (and four companion cases) (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-152-13)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports.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‑11277 COMMONWEALTH vs. CORY A. MOODY (and four companion cases[1]). Berkshire. April 1, 2013. ‑ August 9, 2013. Present: Ireland, C.J., Spina, Cordy, Botsford, Gants, Duffly, & Lenk, JJ. Eavesdropping. Evidence, Wiretap. Constitutional Law, Federal preemption. Federal Preemption. Practice, Criminal, Warrant. Search and Seizure, Warrant. Cellular Telephone. Indictments found and returned in the Superior Court Department on December 17, 2010. Pretrial motions to suppress evidence were heard by Daniel A. Ford, J., and a question of law was reported by him to the Appeals Court. The Supreme Judicial Court on its own initiative transferred the case from the Appeals Court. Timothy M. Farris for Devin Newman. Edmund R. St. John, III, for Cory A. Moody. Joseph A. Pieropan, Assistant District Attorney, for the Commonwealth. The following submitted briefs for amici curiae: Dana A. Curhan & Matthew R. Segal for American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts. Martha Coakley, Attorney General, & Jessica V. Barnett & Patrick Hanley, Assistant Attorneys General, for the Attorney General. Michael J. Iacopino, of New Hampshire, Veronica J. White, Benjamin Leatherman, Peter Ettenberg, Frank Camera, Peter Clifford, & Max D. Stern, for Jorge Areiza & others. CORDY, J. The defendants, Cory A. Moody and Devin Newman, were separately indicted for various violations of the Controlled Substances Act, G. L. c. 94C, stemming from their alleged involvement in an organized group engaged in drug trafficking in Berkshire County. In particular, Moody was indicted for one count of trafficking in cocaine, G. L. c. 94C, § 32E (b); one count of distribution of cocaine, G. L. c. 94C, § 32A (c); and two counts of conspiracy to violate the drug laws, G. L. c. 94C, § 40.[2] For his part, Newman was indicted for one count of conspiracy to traffic in cocaine, G. L. c. 94C, § 40. Prior to trial, the defendants filed separate motions to suppress the fruits of several search warrants issued under the Massachusetts wiretap statute, G. L. c. 272, § 99, which authorized the interception of calls and text messages sent over their cellular telephones. The defendants argued that the interception of these forms of communication was beyond the scope of authority provided under G. L. c. 272, § 99 and, thus, preempted by the cognate provisions of the Federal wiretap statute, 18 U.S.C. §§ 2510 et seq. (2006 & Supp. V 2011). In a consolidated decision, the motion judge denied the […]