Attorney Joe Serpa has defended criminal cases in the Massachusetts District Courts and Boston Municipal Court since 1995. These posts cover Massachusetts criminal law as it is practiced. Mr. Serpa explains statutes, case law, court-by-court procedure, and how charges are defended and resolved. These pages are written for defendants, licensed professionals, students, tradespeople, and non-citizens who need to understand what a Massachusetts criminal charge means and what the defense options are.
A Massachusetts traffic stop now generates evidence in places the traditional stop never touched. It often begins with a license plate reader hit or a database query before the blue lights, and it continues after the tow truck leaves, into the driver’s phone, the vehicle’s own computers, and months of location history. Massachusetts courts have…
Continue reading ›Updated August 2026 A Massachusetts domestic violence arrest can end a defendant’s access to firearms long before the criminal charge is resolved. A temporary 209A order can require immediate surrender of firearms, ammunition, and the license to carry under G.L. c. 209A, § 3B. The licensing authority can suspend the license on a suitability review…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | Massachusetts Criminal Defense Since 1995 A complainant cannot drop a domestic violence charge in Massachusetts. Once the police file a complaint, the district attorney, not the complainant, decides whether the case proceeds. Recantation is common in Massachusetts domestic violence cases. Days or weeks after an…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | Massachusetts Criminal Defense Since 1995 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 | Massachusetts Criminal Defense Since 1995 Negligent operation of a motor vehicle under G.L. c. 90, § 24(2)(a) is a criminal charge, not a civil traffic ticket. Police frequently begin the case with a criminal citation and an application for a complaint rather than an arrest.…
Continue reading ›Massachusetts shoplifting and larceny cases often begin with a private clerk-magistrate hearing before any criminal complaint or arraignment. The immediate question is whether the clerk-magistrate will issue a complaint and start a public criminal case. If the application is denied, no complaint issues, no arraignment occurs, and that application creates no Criminal Offender Record Information…
Continue reading ›Massachusetts unlicensed-operation hearing guidance for international students, J-1 visitors, skilled workers, medical trainees, and foreign-license holders.
Continue reading ›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 framework is settled. A traffic stop does not authorize a search of the vehicle. The Commonwealth…
Continue reading ›Updated August 2026 A Massachusetts drug case may be resolved through a suppression motion, a failure of proof, an authorized diversion or nonconviction disposition, or a trial. These are different legal routes. Evidence can be excluded because police obtained it unlawfully, but admissible evidence may also be insufficient to prove possession, intent to distribute, the…
Continue reading ›By Attorney Joe Serpa | Georgetown University Law Center | Massachusetts Criminal Defense Since 1995 Massachusetts uses the word “harassment” in several distinct laws. Criminal harassment under M.G.L. c. 265, § 43A is a criminal charge. A 258E harassment restraining order (harassment prevention order) is a civil remedy. Under the three-act ground in Chapter 258E,…
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