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Damages – Pre-judgment interest – Deposit
Where a judge ruled in favor of the defendant in a dispute over a contract to construct a pier, a remand is necessary for further consideration on the issue of pre-judgment interest.
Search and seizure – Affidavit – Hearing
Where a motion to suppress was denied without an evidentiary hearing, a remand must be ordered because the defendant's affidavit sufficed to require the judge to hold an evidentiary hearing.
Search and seizure – Staleness – Controlled buys
Where a defendant moved to suppress evidence seized pursuant to search warrants for his residence and for a motor vehicle, a judge’s decision to deny the motion with respect to the defendant’s residence must be reversed because the information in the warrant affidavit was stale when it was submitted.
Damages – Partial payment – Post-judgment interest
Where (1) the plaintiffs in a medical malpractice action obtained a judgment of $473,317.87, including $360,000 in compensatory damages, and (2) the defendant's insurer paid the plaintiffs $168,199.45 in partial satisfaction of the judgment, the partial payment should have been applied first against the accrued post-judgment interest.
Criminal – Dangerous weapon – Sandal
Where a defendant was convicted of assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon, there was insufficient evidence to prove that a sandal was used as a dangerous weapon, so the judgment of conviction must be vacated and a new judgment of conviction must enter on the lesser included offense of assault and battery.
Criminal – Dismissal – Prejudice
Where a District Court judge ordered the dismissal with prejudice of a criminal complaint, there was no showing of “irremediable harm,” so the dismissal should not have been with prejudice.
Search and seizure – Evidentiary hearing – Continuance
Where a defendant's motion to suppress was allowed with prejudice after the commonwealth was not prepared to go forward with a scheduled evidentiary hearing, that decision must be vacated because there was no egregious prosecutorial misconduct or substantial risk of prejudice to the defendant.
Domestic relations – Alimony
Where a judgment of divorce nisi did not provide for alimony, a remand is necessary because the judge's determination that the husband could not afford alimony payments was erroneous.
Criminal – Plea – Withdrawal
Where a motion to withdraw a guilty plea was allowed, that decision must be vacated and a remand ordered, as the judge abused his discretion by improperly considering factors that were not present at the time of the plea and by failing to consider the totality of the circumstances at the time of the plea.
Search and seizure – Traffic stop – 911 call
Where a defendant has moved to suppress evidence obtained during a stop and seizure of him and the car he was driving, a judge’s decision to allow that motion must be reversed because there was reasonable suspicion that the defendant had operated his vehicle negligently and dangerously.
Search and seizure – Traffic stop – Protective sweep
Where a defendant moved to suppress evidence and statements resulting from a stop and search of his vehicle by Somerville police officers, a judge’s decision to allow that motion must be reversed because the officers had reasonable suspicion both to stop the defendant and to conduct a protective sweep of the vehicle.
Criminal – Ammunition – Duplicative conviction
Where a defendant was convicted of unlawful possession of ammunition without an FID card, that conviction must be reversed as duplicative.
Verdicts & Settlements
- Injury during baby’s adenoidectomy leads to stroke
- Construction worker’s hand caught in cement mixer
- Worker trapped in freezer, dies during steam cleaning
- Pedestrian, 69, hit by motor vehicle while in crosswalk
- Four-vehicle pileup leaves driver with spinal cord injury
- Nursing home staff blamed for kidney-failure death
- Pharmacy’s late delivery blamed for patient’s death
- Man, 25, drowns after swimming lesson at fitness club
Opinion Digests
- Jurisdiction – Forum selection clause – Non-signatory
- Criminal – Responsibility
- Attorneys – Lien
- Landlord and tenant – Default judgment
- Zoning – Constructive grant – Comprehensive permit
- Fraud – False Claims Act – Settlement share
- Civil practice – Discovery – Cybersecurity
