Articles Posted in Search and Seizure

In Commonwealth v. Bennett the Appeals Court held that holding a person’s ID for a warrant check was an unlawful seizure and affirmed suppression.

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center October 16, 2026 On September 30, 2026, the Massachusetts Appeals Court ordered the dismissal of gun charges against a juvenile whom Boston police had frisked after a 911 call reporting “three guys with guns” in a Dorchester backyard. The police ordered the juvenile out of a…

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center September 28, 2026 At about 1 A.M. on September 2, 2024, Boston police officers on patrol in Dorchester saw that the registration on an Acura sport utility vehicle had expired. The officers confirmed through their database that the registration was expired and non-renewable, activated their lights,…

How prosecutors use automatic license plate reader data, what Commonwealth v. McCarthy requires, and how the defense challenges the search and the accuracy of the reads.

The Massachusetts SJC rejected a fixed deadline for police to seek a search warrant after seizing a cell phone and upheld delays of 109 and 123 days under the specific facts of two cases.

In a Massachusetts prosecution that begins with a motor vehicle stop, the Commonwealth’s ability to proceed often depends on the judge’s ruling on the motion to suppress. Firearms, drug, and operating under the influence charges typically rest on what the police saw and seized in the minutes after the blue lights came on. The admissibility…

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | Massachusetts Criminal Defense Since 1995 On June 29, 2026, the United States Supreme Court held in Chatrie v. United States, No. 25-112, 609 U.S. ___ (2026), that police conducted a Fourth Amendment search when they acquired a suspect’s Google Location History data. The Court reasoned…

After a Massachusetts traffic stop that leads to a drug charge or a firearms charge, many people ask whether the police had the right to search the car. The answer depends on the facts, but the governing rules are settled. A traffic stop does not authorize a search of the vehicle. The Commonwealth must justify…

Massachusetts police who seize a digital device may ask for the passcode. Many people comply out of panic, a wish to appear cooperative, or a belief that refusing will look like guilt. The decision to give a passcode has legal consequences. The law governing that decision is precise. Three situations are frequently confused with one…

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | Massachusetts Criminal Defense Since 1995 June 2026. Updated July 2026 for the Supreme Court’s geofence ruling in Chatrie v. United States. A Massachusetts search warrant for a digital device, whether a smartphone, laptop, tablet, or cloud storage account, does not authorize a search of all…