Articles Posted in Search and Seizure

In a Massachusetts prosecution that begins with a motor vehicle stop, the motion to suppress is often the filing that decides the case. 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, and each item of evidence depends…

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense On June 29, 2026, the United States Supreme Court held in Chatrie v. United States that a geofence warrant is a search under the Fourth Amendment. The decision came down 6 to 3, with Justice Kagan writing for the majority.…

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense One of the most common questions after a Massachusetts traffic stop that leads to a drug charge or a firearms charge is whether the police had the right to search the car. The answer is fact specific, but the legal…

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense June 2026 When Massachusetts law enforcement seizes a digital device and demands the passcode, many people comply out of panic, a desire to appear cooperative, or a mistaken belief that refusing will make them look guilty. That choice has real…

By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | 30 Years Massachusetts Criminal Defense 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, is not a general license to search…