Arrests, Arraignments and Clerk’s Hearings: How do Criminal Cases Begin in Massachusetts District and Boston Municipal Courts?

Notice to Appear by Mail vs. Arrest

Massachusetts State and local police investigations in Massachusetts ultimately include a police decision whether to charge a person with a criminal offense. When the decision is to begin a criminal case, police choose one of the three methods of beginning a Massachusetts criminal case described above.

Here is what you can expect in a little more detail.

Notice by Mail: If you are not arrested, the Massachusetts Trial Court will mail you a notice to appear either to a clerk magistrate hearing or a notice to appear for arraignment. It is important to attend your clerk magistrate’s hearing because it is an opportunity to keep your criminal case permanently private. Receiving a notice by mail rather than being arrested gives you a critical advantage. It means the government has not yet formalized the charges on your public record. For licensed professionals, tradespeople, and university students, this is the exact window where we intervene to dismantle the allegations before they trigger mandatory reporting requirements, CORI entries, or academic discipline.

Massachusetts criminal laws require an opportunity for you to have a clerk magistrate’s hearing for most misdemeanors. Massachusetts criminal laws make clerk magistrate’s hearings the option of the accusing police department for all felonies and a few specific misdemeanors.

Again, for most Massachusetts misdemeanors, clerk magistrate’s hearings are your mandatory right. Most Massachusetts misdemeanors require that the police officer begin your case with a notice to appear for a clerk magistrate’s hearing.

Common exceptions are domestic violence accusations, including 209A restraining oder violations, and drunk driving offenses in which you are stopped by police (“OUI”). In these cases, the police may either arrest you or begin your case with a notice to appear either for arraignment or for a Massachusetts clerk magistrate’s hearing. A police officer also may arrest you for a misdeamor that the officer witnessed first hand.

For Massachusetts motor vehicle offenses, the procedure is a little different. Your Uniform Motor Vehicle Citation, or “ticket,” is also your ticket to a clerk magistrate’s hearing. Here, however, it is your responsibility to deliver the citation to the local district court within FOUR DAYS of receiving the ticket for a criminal motor vehicle offense such as leaving the scene of an accident or reckless operation of a motor vehicle. Do not mistake a criminal citation for a standard traffic ticket. Failing to request the Magistrate hearing within this strict 96-hour window waives your right to a private hearing, guaranteeing that a formal criminal complaint will issue against you and your driving privileges will be immediately jeopardized.

For an explanation of the criminal motor vehicle uniform citation process, please see our page HERE.

Clerk’s hearings can also be available for complaints of felonies in the district or municipal court. A police officer may, if she chooses, apply for a clerk’s hearing of a felony application for a criminal complaint. If the officer chooses to notify you this way rather than arrest you, the court must hold a clerk magistrate’s hearing before a felony criminal complaint can begin against you.

(In the Massachusetts Superior Court, the procedure can be different.  These cases may also begin in the district court and later be transferred to the Superior Court. They may also begin with a Grand Jury indictment directly in the Superior Court.  We discuss the indictment process here.)

Civilians, people who are not police officers, may also ask the court to charge you with a crime. You will not be arrested cases where civilians apply for criminal complaints. Instead, you will receive a notice to appear for a clerk’s hearing in a Massachusetts district court if the court accepts the civilian application for a criminal complaint. Because civilian hearings are frequently fueled by personal disputes rather than police investigations, they present a prime opportunity for a seasoned defense attorney to expose exaggerated claims and secure an immediate dismissal.

Arrest: If you are arrested, you must be brought to court for an arraignment within 24 hours (weekends excluded). A police officer can arrest you only under three limited circumstances. An arrest strips away the opportunity for a private, pre-arraignment hearing. It results in immediate booking, fingerprinting, and the creation of a public arrest record. Arrests can occur for any felony charges. Arrests can also occur if a police officer witnesses an alleged misdemeanor involving a “breach of the peace” or certain driving or domestic violence offenses. Finally, a police officer can also arrest you if there is an arrest warrant.

You may not be arrested for any other misdemeanor offense. In felony cases, a police officer can also choose not to arrest you and instead to give you notice to appear for a clerk’s hearing in a felony accusation.  The officer can also elect to skip the clerk magistrate hearing and schedule your case for an arraignment.  The court will send you a notice by mail to appear in either case. For the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor in Massachusetts, see our explanation here.

Again, a police officer cannot arrest you for a misdemeanor that the officer did not witness firsthand, with a few exceptions.  The most common exceptions are some driving offenses and domestic violence offenses. You can be arrested for drunk driving, (“OUI” or Operating Under the Influence in Massachusetts) and for reckless operation where there was serious bodily injury, for example.  Also, certain specific criminal laws in Massachusetts allow arrests for misdemeanor offenses committed outside of the officer’s presence. Massachusetts General Laws allows a police officer to arrest you for several domestic violence misdemeanors committed outside of the officer’s presence or for offenses involving a 209A abuse prevention order violation, more commonly known as a restraining order violation.

If you are arrested, our immediate objective shifts to securing your release, managing bail conditions, and preparing your defense for arraignment, pretrial and trial.

Contact a Massachusetts Criminal Law Expert

The government begins constructing its case against you the moment a police officer stops you or calls you and files an application for a criminal complaint or issues a citation. Delaying your response—or attempting to navigate a magistrate hearing or arraignment without seasoned legal counsel—is a risk to your career, your academic standing, and your permanent Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI).

Do not assume a notice to appear in the mail is a minor administrative issue. You require an experienced, able and fact-based defense strategy immediately.

Contact Serpa Law Office at 617.936.0201 for smart, career-oriented counsel to protect your livelihood. We will provide a sober assessment of your legal standing and immediately begin constructing your defense.