Commonwealth v. Ventura (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-089-13)
Sex offender must register only by conviction of enumerated offense; judge lacks authority to impose registration as condition of probation or revoke prior relief order.
Lawyers
Commonwealth v. Suero (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-090-13)
Defendant convicted of both statutory rape and indecent assault of child under fourteen based on single criminal act. Convictions duplicative; lesser included offense conviction vacated.
Klairmont, et al. v. Gainsboro Restaurant, Inc., et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-087-13)
Consumer Protection Act liability for decades of knowing building code violations at commercial establishment; claim survives death of decedent; remanded for proper damages calculation.
City of Worcester v. College Hill Properties, LLC, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-083-13)
Apartments with full leases are not lodgings under the lodging house act; tenants renting complete dwelling units differ legally from lodgers renting rooms.
Commonwealth v. Batista (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-085-13)
Mandatory sex offender sentence requires specific allegation of predicate offense in charging document, not mere statutory language incorporation.
Owens v. Commonwealth (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-086-13)
Interlocutory appeal of motion to dismiss denial unavailable absent single justice decision on merits or reservation for full court review.
Chow v. Merrimack Mutual Fire Insurance Company (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-062-13)
Homeowner's insurance exclusion for frozen-pipe damage turns on whether the insured used reasonable care to maintain heat while property was unoccupied. Reversed because jury instruction improperly attributed caretaker's negligence without determining relationship between principal and agent.
Citizens Bank of Massachusetts v. Coleman (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-063-13)
Resulting trust arose when husband transferred rental properties to wife nominally to shield assets from creditors, not as gift, despite gratuitous family transfer presumption.
Dos Santos, et al. v. Coleta, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-084-13)
Property owner liable for maintaining open and obvious danger where owner created and facilitated the dangerous condition knowing lawful entrants would encounter it.
Commonwealth v. Lewis (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-081-13)
Conviction reversed due to prosecutor's improper closing argument characterizing defendant and defense as "street thugs" and a "sham," inviting jury to decide case irrationally.