New Criminal Charges: If a “straight warrant” was issued against you, you will be arraigned.  The court will issue a straight warrant when a criminal complaint or indictment is filed against you and the police convince the court that you should be arrested rather than served with a summons to appear in court. During the arraignment the court will read the criminal charges against you. The court may enter a plea of not guilty on your behalf.

The prosecutor can ask the court to set bail to ensure your appearance at the next court date. A judge may order you held in custody without bail if he or she believes you are a danger. A qualified lawyer can explain to the judge why the court should release you without paying bail or why the court should impose a low bail amount.

Failure to Appear or Failure to Pay: If you were required to appear in court or pay a court fine, but fail to do so, the court will issue a “default warrant” for your arrest.

Probation Violation: If your probation officer believes you violated the terms of your probation, a judge may issue a “probation surrender warrant” for your arrest to make you appear in court for a probation violation hearing.

If you were issued a default warrant, or a probation surrender warrant, you will be required to pay a fee to the court in cash or by certified check, unless there is a good reason for why you cannot pay it that day. If the warrant was issued because you owe the court money, you should be prepared to pay the amount owed.

“What happens if I ignore an arrest warrant notice?”

The police can arrest you at anytime once a warrant is issued against you. Until you clear up your arrest warrant, and depending on the type of warrant, you may face the following consequences:

• Suspension of your drivers license: Your drivers license may be suspended by the Registry of Motor Vehicles.

• Suspension of your public assistance benefits: You can be denied all financial and other public assistance benefits by the Department of Transitional Assistance.

• Reporting your warrant to out-of-state police: Your warrant may be reported to federal and state police and criminal justice agencies outside of Massachusetts. You may be subject to arrest in other states.

• Police access to your personal records: The police can obtain personal information about you in order to identify, locate and arrest you. The police can review your unemployment compensation records, your Department of Revenue wage reports or saving account reports and your public assistance records from the Department of Transitional Assistance or the Commission for the Blind.

• Suspension of your tax refunds, unemployment compensation and workers compensation: You may be denied any state tax refund, any unemployment compensation payments and any workers compensation payments from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

• Suspension of your permits and professional licenses: Any permit, certificate, professional license or authorization issued by an agency or authority of Massachusetts to participate in a trade, business or profession may become suspended.

• Charge for your arrest: If you are arrested on a warrant and it is a default warrant or a probation surrender warrant you will be required to pay a default warrant arrest fee to the court or perform one day of community service.

Even if you think the warrant was issued against you in error, DO NOT IGNORE THE NOTICE!

While addressing an energetic crowd of legislators, community activists and ex-offenders the Governor stated, “this legislation brings our outdated criminal history database into the 21st century, ensures law enforcement agencies, employers and housing providers have access to accurate and complete records in appropriate circumstances, and helps people get back to work so they can support their families.”

The new law includes the following:

Internet-Based CORI System

• Employers and housing providers now have access to criminal records though an internet-based system.
• Felony convictions will remain available in the system for 10 years.
• Misdemeanor convictions will remain available in the system for 5 years, as long as there are no subsequent offenses.
• Pending cases that are continued without a finding (CWOF) will be available in the system until the case is disposed.
• Murder and sex offense convictions remain in the system permanently.
• Courts and law enforcement agencies continue to have full access to criminal offender record information.

Restrictions on Employment Applications

• Employers are prohibited from asking applicants about prior arrests or convictions on job applications. However, the restriction does not apply to employers who by law cannot hire ex-felons, etc.

Inmate Rehabilitation & Parole Eligibility

• Non-violent offenders serving mandatory minimum sentences can participate in education and training programs before they re-enter the community. These opportunities are designed to reduce the likelihood of the inmates committing new crimes following their releases.
• Some inmates imprisoned in the House of Correction for non-violent drug offenses will be eligible for parole after serving one-half of a mandatory minimum sentence if no aggravating factors are found. As a condition of parole, the Parole Board may require enhanced supervision such as GPS tracking.

Pretrial Detention for Illegal Firearms Possession

• Illegal firearms possession has been added to the list of crimes that a prosecutor may use to move for the pretrial detention of crime suspects.

Opponents of the new law believe that employers and public housing providers will have a more difficult time screening for felons while supporters argue that the law gives ex-offenders a second chance.

What do you think about the new law?

In a drug possession case, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were in possession of an illegal substance. Being charged with a drug possession crime does not necessarily mean that the government has enough evidence to prove its case against you. Merely being in the presence of illegal drugs, or associating with people who have drugs is not enough.

How do you know whether you are, or have ever been, in possession of illegal drugs? Keep reading to see whether any of the following categories apply to you:

You and another person own or hold an illegal drug together.
Massachusetts law recognizes that you may “possess” a drug even if you are not the only person who owns or holds on to it. For example, if you own and share a stash of marijuana with a friend who agrees to keep the stash at his house for both of you to use, you are in joint possession of the marijuana (no pun intended).

You have knowledge of an illegal drug and you have the ability and intent to exercise control over it.
You can be in “possession” of a drug even if you don’t keep it close to you. For example, you are in possession of any drug that you keep locked away in a safe deposit box at your bank or hidden at home in your kitchen cabinet. The government considers a drug to be within your possession if you have knowledge of the drug and you have the ability and intent to exercise control over it. This is known as constructive possession.

You have physical control or custody of illegal drugs.
You “possess” anything that is in your direct physical control or custody. For example, you’re in possession of whatever is in your pockets, wallet or purse right now. This is called actual possession.  In cases like that,  the government must prove that you knew about the drug.

Whether the government can prove  possession will ultimately depend on the specific facts of your case.

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1. Watch what you say to the police.
We discussed why you should remain silent during an arrest in Arrest Tips, Part 1.  Remember to be polite and respectful during your encounter with the police. Do not argue, complain, yell or use foul language. Never threaten a police officer.

2. Do not run away.
Follow the police officer’s directions. Surrender peacefully.

3. Never touch a police officer.
Do not bump up against, push, hit, kick or make any physical contact with an officer. In fact, do no make any sudden movements. Keep your hands where the officer can see them.

If the arresting officer is being physically abusive towards you, do not fight back. Physical resistance may cause the officer to become more aggressive. If you get injured during the arrest, seek medical attention immediately. Take photographs of your injuries as soon as possible and file a written complaint if you feel that your rights have been violated.

Remember: Stay calm. Be polite. Do not resist arrest.

1. Don’t talk.

If asked, give the officer your name, address and telephone number. Do not answer any other questions. You may politely ask the officer for his or her name, a badge number and the reasons for your arrest, but then remain silent.

2. Ask to speak to a lawyer immediately.

When an officer starts questioning you about the alleged crime, ask for a lawyer. You can say, “I want to speak to an attorney before I answer any questions,” or “I want to talk to a lawyer.” The officer should stop questioning you at that point, however he or she may try to question you later. Repeat your request for an attorney, in a calm and respectful manner, each and every time an officer tries to question you.

You have a right to speak to a lawyer when you are being detained and questioned by the police.  Asking for a lawyer does not mean that you are guilty.  Don’t be afraid to assert your rights.

3. Do not make any written or verbal statements to the police about what happened.

A police officer may ask you to explain what happened in writing or verbally. Do not write anything down. Do not sign any written statements. Do not answer any questions about the case.

4. Do not try to convince the police officer of your innocence.

Do not try to talk your way out of the arrest.  Resist the urge.  Remain silent even if you feel that you are being accused of a crime that you did not commit.  It is not the police officer’s duty to decide whether you are guilty.  A police officer conducts investigations and makes arrests.  A judge or a jury is responsible for determining  guilt or innocence.

If the police officer decides to arrest you then there isn’t much you can say that will change the officer’s mind. More often than not, something you say will do more damage than good.

If you find out that you are under criminal investigation, and you haven’t been arrested yet, do not call or visit the police station to try to clear your name. Call an attorney. Discuss your case with a lawyer so that she can help you determine the best course of action.

5. Don’t believe the police.

Police officers are trained to get you to talk so that they can build a criminal case against you.   Officers are permitted to lie or twist the facts if necessary.  For example, an officer may offer to “go easy” on you or reduce the charges against you if you answer all of his or her questions.  Don’t be fooled.  Police officers have the authority to make arrests but they cannot dismiss a criminal case or make a deal with you.  Only the prosecutor can do that.

6. After an arrest, only talk to your lawyer about the facts of your case.

Any statements that you make around strangers, neighbors, coworkers, friends or family members can get you into more trouble.  They may be called to testify against you.

Do not send written messages about your case to anyone other than your lawyer.  This includes all statements made through e-mail, text messages, Facebook, Twitter, Myspace or any other technology. Once you send a message through your phone or computer, the person receiving the message has a record of your statements.  That person can share it with others and the information can end up in the hands of  police investigators.

Furthermore, the service that enables the communication (e.g. Gmail, Facebook, Myspace, etc.) may keep its own copy of your messages. For example, let’s say you get arrested but your friend is kind enough to bail you out. Later that week you send a Facebook message to your buddy about your recent pending  legal case.   After you send the message you decide that it was a really bad idea to talk about your case online.  Even if you and your friend delete your entire conversation, Facebook  keeps its own copy of your online conversation. If a prosecutor finds out that you made statements that hurt your case, the prosecutor may ask a judge to order Facebook to hand over your account records. Tell your friends and family members that you can’t talk about your case.

Finally, be aware that all calls made from jail are recorded.

If you’re under criminal investigation or you’ve been charged with a crime, hire a lawyer before you talk to the police.

What You Need to Know

Providing police officers with inaccurate information about an alleged crime is not a criminal offense unless  you reported the crime on purpose and you knew that the reported information was false.

The prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you intentionally and knowingly made a false report to the police. In other words, the government must show that:

1. you reported a crime to a police officer or caused someone else to make the report;
2. the report was false;
3. you intentionally made a false report and it was not made by accident or through negligence, and
4. you knew that the report was false.

The Statute

Massachusetts General Law Chapter 269, Section 13A states: Whoever intentionally and knowingly makes or causes to be made a false report of a crime to police officers shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars or by imprisonment in a jail or house of correction for not more than one year, or both.

Do you have a question? Leave a comment below or contact me here.

“Your Call May be Recorded for Quality Assurance Evidence Collection.”

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) has ruled that prosecutors can subpoena recordings of telephone calls made from jails and prisons by inmates and detainees. Prosecutors will attempt to obtain this evidence for use in grand jury investigations and trials. The SJC held that this type of evidence gathering does not violate an inmate’s privacy rights.  Penal institutions (jails and prisons) have to tell the inmates that their calls are being monitored and recorded.

In a dissenting opinion, Chief Justice Margaret Marshall expressed her concern that prosecutors may gain access to telephone calls between inmates and those they trust the most—spouses, therapists, doctors and spiritual counselors. Justice Marshall wrote:

We do not know—if the individual is a pretrial detainee—whether he has been indicted. We do not know whether any of the telephone calls are covered by any privileges—for example whether any telephone calls were placed to the pretrial detainee’s pastor, psychotherapist, or spouse. We do not know whether the inmate or pretrial detainee had any practical means of communicating with his family or pastor or physician except by telephone.

Given this court decision, you should be extremely careful regarding the things you say during a jailhouse call. If someone you know is in jail or prison, remind them that their calls are being monitored and recorded. Do not discuss potentially incriminating information over the phone.

Do you have a question? Leave a comment below. You may also contact me here.