Boston Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

According to The Lowell Sun an exotic dancer at a local strip club has been indicted on a felony assault charge for allegedly stabbing her boyfriend with a 10-inch kitchen knife. It was reported that the defendant stabbed her boyfriend following a night of drinking after they were informed that the boyfriend may face jail time on a drug related offense. The boyfriend suffered three stab wounds to the chest.

In Massachusetts if you are convicted for assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon you can be sentenced to ten years in prison if you are convicted. In order to prove assault by means of a dangerous weapon the Government must prove that there be touching, however slight, that such touching be by means of the weapon, and that the battery be accompanied by use of inherently dangerous weapon, or by use of some other object as weapon, with intent to use such object in dangerous or potentially dangerous fashion. A knife or a gun would be considered an object that is inherently dangerous.

In addition to indicting for assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon, the government often also charges assault with intent to murder in situations where it may be argued that the defendant possessd the specific intent to kill, and malice. A defendant charged with this offense faces the potential penalty of up to twenty years in prison.

If you have been charged, or may be charged, with one of this offenses it is imperative that you contact an attorney as soon as possible. Effective negotiations may result in being charged with the lesser of the two crimes. Furthermore, the sooner an experienced Boston area attorney becomes involved the sooner a successful defense can be mounted. Depending on the circumstances in your case a defense of self-defense, defense of another or maintaining that the identifying witnesses are mistaken in their identification of you as the perpetrator are strategies that must be pursued and developed early in a case. Call Attorney Kathleen M. McCarthy today if you are charged with these types of offenses and she will begin work on your case.

According to the Lowell Sun, police officers observed a driver of a car and his passenger engage in a drug transaction. As a result of these observations, the police pulled the car over and determined that the driver's license to operate was revoked. The police found bags of marijuana and a 9 mm handgun on the passenger and cocaine and illegal prescription drugs on the driver. The driver's girlfriend gave the police permission to search the home that the couple shared and the police retrieved what is believed to be cocaine, bullets, a 9 mm handgun and a shotgun. The driver was charged with multiple counts of illegal possesssion of controlled substances with intent to distribute and firearm offenses.

If you are charged with a violation of the controlled substances act or with a firearm offense it is crucial that you contact an attorney as soon as possible. If you are charged with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance in a school zone or distribution of a controlled substance in a school zone you face a mandatory sentence of two years in prison. Similarly if you are charged with possession of a firearm you also face a mandatory minimum sentence. To successfully defend against these types of cases it is necessary to file appropriate pre-trial non evidentiary and evidentiary motions. These motions include requests for informant information, measurement of the place of the alleged offense to the school and motions to suppress the stop and/or physical evidence. Contact Kathleen M. McCarthy today if you are charged with these types of offenses so that she can get to work and successfully defend you.

A judge ordered that a man be held on $50,000 cash or surety following his arraignment for allegedly assaulting his infant son. The man pleaded not guilty to the charges. According to the Lowell Sun the twenty five year old man struck his three month old son across his chest causing visible bruising. The police responded to the hospital after a babysitter brought the child to the hospital.

In Massachusetts, a person charged with the misdemeanor count of assault and battery faces up to two and one half years in prison or by a fine of not more than $1,000. Under Massachusetts law, assault and battery is the intentional and unjustified use of force upon the person of another, however slight, or the intentional doing of a wanton or grossly negligent act causing personal injury to another. An “assault” is an attempt or offer to do bodily harm to another by force or violence, or simply an attempt to commit a battery. If you are charged with assault or assault and battery it is imperative that you contact an attorney as soon as possible. It is critical to develop a defense early on in a case. Depending on the facts of the situation self-defense or defense of another are defenses that must be evaluated early on in the proceedings. If you wait too late, the opportunity to locate and interview witnesses with helpful information may disappear. Do not wait. Call Attorney Kathleen M. McCarthy to get to work on your defense right now.