How G.L. c. 90, § 24D and Commonwealth v. Cahill let a driver with one OUI prior ten years or more old resolve a second offense with first-offender treatment, and what the disposition does and does not change.
Continue reading ›Who qualifies for a Massachusetts hardship license after an OUI, why the breath test decision moves the date, the 24D immediate application, and what wins the RMV hearing.
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense A Massachusetts traffic stop used to be a roadside event. An officer saw a violation, pulled the car over, and whatever happened next happened in person, on the shoulder, in a few minutes. That stop no longer exists. The modern…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense A student from Connecticut resolves a Massachusetts case with a CWOF and a year of probation, and the semester ends. A software engineer on probation in Quincy accepts a job in Austin. A New Hampshire resident arrested on Route 93…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense A common call to this office begins the same way. Someone who has not lived in Massachusetts for years goes to renew a driver’s license in their current state, and the clerk tells them the renewal cannot be processed because…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense Motorists receive criminal citations for negligent operation of a motor vehicle under M.G.L. c. 90, § 24(2)(a) either after being stopped by police or in the mail. Many people treat the citation like a traffic ticket. It is anything but.…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense Unlicensed operation under M.G.L. c. 90, § 10 is one of the most frequently charged motor vehicle crimes among students arriving in Boston and Cambridge, professionals relocating from other states, and skilled workers who have not yet converted a foreign…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense One of the most common causes of unlicensed operation charges in the Massachusetts District Courts is not deliberate disregard of the law. It is a genuine misunderstanding of how quickly a new resident, student, or professional must obtain a Massachusetts…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense An OUI arrest in Massachusetts initiates a sequence of events that moves quickly and has consequences that extend well beyond the criminal case. Two entirely separate proceedings begin at the same time, one in the criminal court and one at…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense I maintain a perfect record of not guilty verdicts in OUI jury trials in the Massachusetts District Courts and Boston Municipal Court. I built that record over thirty years in courtrooms across Eastern Massachusetts. In this post I explain how…
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