Commonwealth v. Hart (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-029-14)
Guilty plea to resisting arrest vacated where prosecution offered no facts establishing the statutory elements of force, threats, or substantial injury risk at plea hearing.
Commonwealth
Commonwealth v. Martin (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-030-14)
Defendant convicted of murder under felony-murder rule with armed robbery predicate. Court affirmed, holding statements validly obtained, sufficiency of circumstantial evidence for robbery established.
Commonwealth v. Bynoe (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-016-14)
When probation condition requires treatment program completion without specifying a deadline, probationer must comply within reasonably prompt period as established by probation officer.
Commonwealth v. Wadlington (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-024-14)
First-degree murder conviction affirmed where jury properly convicted on three alternative theories despite instructional omissions that caused no prejudice.
Commonwealth v. Joyner (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-025-14)
Armed robbery conviction affirmed where latent fingerprint evidence from crime scene matched defendant's thumb print under ACE-V methodology, without need for statistical evidence of accuracy.
Commonwealth v. Augustine (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-026-14)
CSLI obtained from cellular service provider constitutes a search under Massachusetts Constitution requiring probable cause, not just reasonable suspicion under federal Stored Communications Act.
Commonwealth v. Ray (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-019-14)
Conviction of first-degree murder affirmed; life sentence vacated and remanded for resentencing to allow parole eligibility for sixteen-year-old defendant.
Commonwealth v. McGee (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-022-14)
Murder conviction affirmed despite newly discovered evidence claims. Witness testimony that became available after Fifth Amendment waiver not considered new where defendant knew its content pretrial.
Commonwealth v. Alebord (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-021-14)
Defendant's Sixth Amendment right to public trial during jury empanelment waived where experienced trial counsel was aware of courtroom closure practice and failed to object.
Commonwealth v. Bernard (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-009-14)
Traffic stop for tinted license plate cover unconstitutional where cover does not obscure the registration numbers or reduce legibility.