Mens reus
The mental state of the defendant
What are the rights of arrest for felonies?
All felonies are arrestable
MGL Chapter 272
Laws concerning public order
What is meant by the term “chain of custody”?
To prevent loss, destruction, tampering and contamination,
physical evidence must be collected and packaged properly
using a reliable chain-of-custody which is the meticulous
and chronological documentation of evidence, from the
moment it is seized to its presentation in court.
A reliable chain-of-custody shows every person who came
in direct contact with the evidence, either through collection,
storage or analysis.
Civil law
Civil law deals with the disputes between individuals, organizations, or between the two, in which compensation is awarded to the victim.
Lesser included offenses
A “lesser included offense” is one whose elements are a subset of
the elements of the charged offense. To charge suspects correctly,
officers must recognize crimes with lesser included elements.
In general, officers should charge suspects with the most serious
offense committed. Prosecutors have wide discretion and can
negotiate a plea to a lesser-included offense in appropriate
circumstances.
Accessory before the fact
The suspect is accused of having been an accessory to a felony before that felony was committed.
- Someone other than the suspect committed the felony;
- That the suspect was an accessory to that felony by counseling,
hiring, or in some other way arranging for that person to commit the
felony; and - That the suspect did so with the same intent as the principal was
required to have to be guilty of the felony
What is meant by general intent?
For an act to be criminal, it must be committed with a criminal mind,
which we call intent. Most crimes require general intent.
General intent exists when the offender “knowingly” acts but does not
necessary desire the consequences of the act.
What is meant by specific intent?
Specific intent exists when the offender has a purposeful state of mind to accomplish the precise criminal act.
Accomplice (also known as an aider or abettor)
A person who:
a) Knowingly and intentionally participated in some meaningful
way in the commission of the offense, alone or with others and
b) Did so with the intent required for that offense
NOTE: Also referred to as “joint venture.” The “aider or abettor” is guilty of the same crime as the principal.
Principal
The person who actually commits the crime.
Conspiracy
A conspiracy is an agreement between two or more people
to do something unlawful (e.g., commit a crime). There
are three elements to the crime of conspiracy:
- Suspect joined an agreement or plan with one or more
persons; - Purpose of the agreement was to do something unlawful;
- Suspect joined the conspiracy knowing of the unlawful plan
and intended to help carry it out.
Which two (2) courts impact lawful police action in Massachusetts?
- The Massachusetts Appeals Court
- Supreme Judicial Court
What are spontaneous utterances?
Spontaneous utterances are out-of-court statements spoken during
the heat of the moment while under the stress or excitement of the
event.
Could include 911 calls or excited statements of witnesses on the scene
MGL Chapter 209A
Domestic violence laws
Felony
Any crime punishable by confinement in state
prison or death is a felony.
Statutes of limitations
Requires criminal charges be filed within a specific number of
years from the original date of offense. An expiration date on a
legal claim.
**The statute of limitations for most crimes in
Massachusetts is 6 years.
**Murder – there is no time limit
* Certain sexual assaults involving children have no time limit but
any indictment or complaint found and filed more than 27 years after
the date of commission of such offense shall be supported by
independent evidence that corroborates the victim’s allegation.
* Armed robbery (10 years)
* Rape (15 years)
What is meant by transferred intent?
Transferred intent exists when an offender intends to harm one person but ends up harming another.
MGL Chapter 138
Alcohol crimes
Statutes
Written laws enacted by legislatures that define specific, prohibited conduct
Attempts to commit crimes
In Massachusetts, an attempt to commit a crime is itself a
crime if the suspect has the specific intent to commit the
crime, took an overt act toward committing the crime and
came reasonably close to actually carrying out the crime.
The “overt act” must “be a real step toward carrying out the
crime.
Examples include attempted murder, attempt to commit arson, and attempted breaking and entering of a motor vehicle.
MGL’s 269 and 140
Laws concerning firearms and weapons
Misdemeanor
Crimes that do not allow for the option of confinement in the state prison are
misdemeanors. Maximum possible sentence to HOC is 2½ years per offense.
These are the three ways to charge a suspect with a crime. Think keyword WAC
**(W)arrant **- Issued by a judge or clerk magistrate
(A) rrest
(C)omplaint
