Commonwealth v. Arias (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-132-13)
Murder conviction upheld where trial judge's jury instructions on defense of another, though incomplete, adequately conveyed the defense and the defendant did not preserve objections for appeal.
Appeals Court Opinions
Commonwealth v. Galazka (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-131-13)
Affirmed conviction for statutory rape, aggravated rape, and assault and battery. Defendant must file sworn indigency affidavit with clerk before court must hear motion for extra fees.
Commonwealth v. Crapps (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-130-13)
Affirmed conviction for crack cocaine trafficking where constructive possession established by sole vehicle occupancy, suspected drug activity, and circumstantial evidence; extrapolated weight calculation permissible.
Adoption of Malik (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-129-13)
Mother loses standing to appeal adoption order after parental rights terminated, even though she reserved right to propose kinship placement.
Commonwealth v. DeGennaro (and 13 companion cases) (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-128-13)
Affirmed convictions of contractor and bookkeeper for embezzling escrow deposits and contractor fraud. Contractual escrow agents qualify as fiduciaries under embezzlement statute.
Upton’s Case (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-127-13)
Investigatory interview about earnings discrepancies constitutes personnel action barring workers' compensation for resulting emotional disability.
Commonwealth v. Liebenbow (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-126-13)
Defendant convicted of larceny for stealing metal from construction site. Whether honest but objectively unreasonable belief property was abandoned can negate specific intent to steal.
Commonwealth v. Halstrom (and seven companion cases) (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-125-13)
Affirmed convictions for inducing minors to prostitution and deriving support from prostitution. Evidence sufficient; jury instructions proper.
Alford, et al. v. Boston Zoning Commission, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-124-13)
IMP approval process is legislative, not quasi-judicial, so Article 29 protections do not apply. Affirmed.
Commonwealth v. Salyer (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-123-13)
Affirmed false report conviction; reversed and remanded criminal harassment conviction due to ineffective assistance of counsel for failing to object to privileged marital communications and insufficiently authenticated evidence.