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‘Serious Bodily Harm’ Does Not Include Animals, Massachusetts Supreme Court Holds
by Dale Chappell
The term “serious bodily harm” does not include harm to animals, unless the statute expressly says so, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held, tossing out a youthful offender indictment.
After a 14-year-old juvenile tortured a dog, the Commonwealth indicted him as a youthful offender for cruelty ...
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More from this issue:
- Study: Unionized Police? Increased Misconduct, by Derek Gilna
- ‘Serious Bodily Harm’ Does Not Include Animals, Massachusetts Supreme Court Holds, by Dale Chappell
- Georgia Supreme Court Vacates Convictions and Sentences Due to Merger Errors, by Matthew Clarke
- Rhode Island High Court Abolishes Shatney in Initial Application for Postconviction Relief by Prisoners Serving Life Without Parole, by Matthew Clarke
- North Dakota Supreme Court Announces Interpretation of Restitution Statutes, by Christopher Zoukis
- Fifth Circuit: 96-Day Pretrial Detention Without Appearance Before Judge or Chance to Post Bail Violates Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Rights, by Matthew Clarke
- Fifth Circuit Holds Prisoner May Sign and Deliver Habeas-Related Motion on Behalf of Fellow Prisoner Under Prison Mailbox Rule, by Dale Chappell
- Federal Judge Excludes Evidence After FBI Lies on Search Warrant Affidavit, Geek Squad on FBI payroll, by Matthew Clarke
- ‘Black Identity Extremists’ Added to FBI List of Domestic Terrorists, by Christopher Zoukis
- The G-Men are Coming: Local Cops Partner with Federal Authorities to Deport Undocumented Immigrants, by Christopher Zoukis
- U.S. Supreme Court: Death Penalty Case Involving Racist Juror Requires Further Consideration, by Christopher Zoukis
- Ohio Supreme Court Holds State Cannot Prove ‘Bulk Amount’ of Fentanyl Under Statute, by Dale Chappell
- Colorado Supreme Court: Conviction of Drunk Motorist for Attempted Reckless Manslaughter and Attempted Second Degree Assault Requires Risk to Discernable Person, Not Merely Public At-Large, by Christopher Zoukis
- U.S. Supreme Court Resolves Split Among Circuit Courts of Appeals on Tax Code § 7212(a), by Richard Resch
- Ninth Circuit Reverses Drug Smuggling Conviction for Improper Exclusion of Evidence of Third-Party Culpability, by Christopher Zoukis
- Arizona Supreme Court: Trial Court Must Tell Jury Defendant Ineligible for Parole in Death Penalty Phase, by Dale Chappell
- Iowa Supreme Court Rules District Courts Have Authority to Hear Postconviction Relief Actions Involving Deprivation of Liberty or Property Interest, by David Reutter
- Innocence be Damned: Prosecutors Who Disregard Justice in Push to Win at Any Cost, by Dale Chappell
- Cautionary Tale: Visible Fingertips in Cellphone Pictures Can Get You Arrested, by Steve Horn
- D.C. Circuit Vacates Sentence Because Government Breached Plea Agreement by Providing Defendant’s Confidential Statements to Sentencing Court, by Dale Chappell
- Colorado Supreme Court Limits Bottom End of Aggravated Sentencing Statute for Habitual Sex Offenders, by Christopher Zoukis
- New Report: 60 Percent of Exonerations Stem from Official Misconduct, by Steve Horn
- Washington High Court Issues New Rule Making Immigration Status Inadmissible, by Derek Gilna
- ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Diagnoses Discredited, Convictions Questioned, by Matthew Clarke
- Captured: ‘Golden State Killer’ Wanted for 12 Murders and 50 Rapes Turns Out To Be Former Sacramento-Area Cop, by Derek Gilna
- Louisiana: No Charges for Cops Who Shot Alton Sterling, Despite Body-Cam Evidence, by Monte McCoin
- Coast to Coast, Sex Offender Residency Restrictions Waste Money, Create Havoc, by Sandy Rozek
- ‘Broken Windows’ Policing Results in Police Lying About Unlawful Stops, by Matthew Clarke
- Drug-Induced Homicide Laws Hurt Rather Than Help Opioid Overdose Crisis, by Dale Chappell
- Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules FBI Admission Microscopic Hair Analysis Wrong 90% of the Time is Newly Discovered Fact Allowing Untimely Post-Conviction Relief Petition, by Christopher Zoukis
- Habeas Hints: Understanding and Satisfying the Strickland Test for IAC, by Kent A. Russell, Tara Hoveland
- Book Review: California Habeas Handbook 2.0 by Kent A. Russell, by Christopher Zoukis
- Victory: Virginia Supreme Court Delivers Blow to Police Use of License Plate Reader Technology to Track Drivers, Surveil Citizens, by The Rutherford Institute
- U.S. Supreme Court Holds Residual Clause Definition of ‘Crime of Violence’ Unconstitutionally Vague Under Due Process Clause, by Dale Chappell
- Vague Criminality and Mass Incarceration: Will Dimaya End the Insanity?, by Leah Litman
- New York Times Investigation Spotlights NYPD Practice of ‘Testilying’, by Derek Gilna
- News in Brief
- Sex Offender Registries: Common Sense or Nonsense?, by Christopher Zoukis
More from Dale Chappell:
- The Death of the Savings Clause, May 15, 2024
- Federal Habeas Corpus: Understanding Second or Successive Petitions for State Prisoners, April 15, 2024
- Fourth Circuit Reinstates Relief From Death Penalty, Citing State’s Forfeiture of Argument Against Relief, May 15, 2023
- Federal Habeas Corpus: The Evidentiary Hearing for Federal Prisoners, April 15, 2023
- Federal Habeas Corpus: How to Raise a Fourth Amendment Claim, Feb. 15, 2023
- Will Overturning Roe v. Wade Kill the Right to Abortion Under BOP Policy?, Jan. 1, 2023
- Federal Habeas Corpus: How to Raise an Actual Innocence Claim, Dec. 15, 2022
- Federal Habeas Corpus: Role of the Magistrate Judge, Nov. 15, 2022
- Federal Habeas Corpus: Obtaining Habeas Relief After a Guilty Plea, Oct. 15, 2022
- Government Snitches Rake in Millions as Their Testimony Is the Leading Cause of Wrongful Convictions, Sept. 15, 2022
More from these topics:
- Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Defendants Under Age 21 Ineligible for LWOP Sentences, May 15, 2024. Life without Parole (LWOP), Juveniles, Juvenile Offenses/Offenders.
- 428 Georgia Prison Employees Criminally Charged in Five Years, April 1, 2024. Guard Misconduct, Criminal Prosecution, Statistics/Trends.
- Kansas Supreme Court Announces State Must Prove Defendant Specifically Intended to Enter Dwelling in Which There Was a Person to Sustain Conviction for Attempted Aggravated Burglary, Overruling State v. Watson, Jan. 15, 2024. State Statutes, Sufficiency of Evidence, Specific Offenses.
- Oregon Supreme Court Announces Overruling of Precedent on ‘Attempted Transfer’ of Drugs, Jan. 15, 2024. State Statutes, Possession in Furtherance of Drug Offense, Conspiracies, Attempts, Solicitations, Attempts/Incomplete Acts, Substantial Step Towards Completion, Completion of All Acts.
- California Court of Appeal: Defendants Who Plead Guilty to Stipulated Sentence Eligible for Resentencing Under Amended § 1170.91, Jan. 15, 2024. State Statutes, Guilty Plea, Resentencing, De Novo Resentencing, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas.
- California Bans Bogus ‘Excited Delirium’ Diagnosis as Cause of Death, Jan. 15, 2024. Medical Misconduct, junk science, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Police--Excessive Force, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), State Statutes.
- West Virginia High Court Decides Medical Practice Liability Act Not Applicable to Prison System, Jan. 1, 2024. Primecare Medical, State Law Claims, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Drug Treatment/Rehab, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), State Statutes.
- Minnesota Abolishes Life Without Parole for Juveniles, June 15, 2023. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Juveniles.
- Indiana Passes Law Prohibiting Police From Lying to Juveniles During Interrogation to Help Prevent False Confessions, May 17, 2023. Juveniles, False Statements/Perjury, Interrogation.
- At Least 1,000 Children Taken from Migrant Parents at Border Still Not Reunited With Them, March 21, 2023. Juveniles, Immigration Law/Offenses.
