Malden Domestic Violence Lawyer for the Malden District Court

A person arrested for domestic violence by the Malden, Everett, Melrose, or Wakefield police faces a criminal case in the Malden District Court. The Malden District Court is not in Malden. The courthouse is at 4040 Mystic Valley Parkway in Medford. The Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office prosecutes the case. The alleged victim often files a separate 209A restraining order case based on the same allegations.

The Commonwealth commonly charges assault and battery on a family or household member under G.L. c. 265, § 13M, in a Malden domestic violence case. The Commonwealth charges an assault and battery on a parent, a sibling, or a roommate under the general assault and battery statute, G.L. c. 265, § 13A. The Commonwealth also charges strangulation or suffocation, threats to commit a crime, intimidation of a witness, and violation of a 209A restraining order in domestic violence cases.

Attorney Joe Serpa has practiced Massachusetts criminal defense since 1995. Attorney Serpa represents defendants in the Malden District Court at clerk-magistrate hearings, arraignments, dangerousness hearings, motion hearings, trials, and 209A restraining order hearings. The firm’s page on Boston and Massachusetts domestic violence defense explains the domestic violence law that applies in every Massachusetts court.

Domestic Violence Arrests in Malden, Everett, Melrose, and Wakefield

The police in the four communities arrest a person at the scene of a domestic call when the officers have probable cause to believe that an assault or an assault and battery took place. Under G.L. c. 209A, § 6, arrest is the preferred police response to a domestic call. Malden and Everett are dense cities with many multi-family homes. In Attorney Serpa’s experience, many Malden domestic violence cases involve family members or partners who share a multi-family home.

A bail commissioner cannot release a person arrested for a domestic violence offense until six hours after the arrest, unless a judge in open court orders an earlier release. G.L. c. 276, § 42A. The police hold an arrested person for arraignment on the next court day unless a bail commissioner releases the person from the station. A person released by a bail commissioner still appears for arraignment on the date the bail commissioner sets.

At the arraignment, the judge releases the defendant on personal recognizance, sets bail under G.L. c. 276, § 58, or imposes conditions of release. The judge may order the defendant to stay away from and have no contact with the alleged victim. A stay away and no contact order can bar the defendant from a shared apartment until the case ends or until a judge changes the condition. The firm’s page on the no contact order explains how a defendant asks the judge to change a condition of release.

A defendant who does not speak English well has the right to a qualified interpreter, appointed by the judge, at the arraignment and at every later court date in the case. G.L. c. 221C, § 2.

The Commonwealth may move to hold the defendant without bail as dangerous under G.L. c. 276, § 58A when the charge involves abuse as G.L. c. 209A, § 1 defines abuse. The judge decides the Commonwealth’s motion after a dangerousness hearing.

The Malden District Court Sits in Medford

The Malden District Court shares the building at 4040 Mystic Valley Parkway in Medford with the Cambridge District Court. The Malden District Court hears criminal cases from Malden, Everett, Melrose, and Wakefield. G.L. c. 218, § 1. The Malden District Court also hears criminal cases that arise at Encore Boston Harbor in Everett.

The Somerville District Court, not the Malden District Court, hears a domestic violence case from Medford, as the firm’s page on domestic violence cases in the Somerville District Court explains. The Cambridge District Court hears cases from Cambridge, Arlington, and Belmont, as the firm’s page on domestic violence cases in the Cambridge District Court explains. The Woburn District Court hears cases from Stoneham and Reading, as the firm’s page on domestic violence cases in the Woburn District Court explains.

A Malden judge can impose up to 2½ years in the house of correction on a single charge but cannot sentence a defendant to state prison. The Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office prosecutes a felony that the District Court cannot try in the Middlesex Superior Court, after a grand jury indicts the defendant. A person under 18 accused of a domestic assault in the four communities appears in the Juvenile Court.

The Alleged Victim Cannot Drop the Charges

The alleged victim cannot drop a domestic violence charge in the Malden District Court. The Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office decides whether the Commonwealth continues to prosecute the charge. The Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office often prosecutes a domestic assault and battery charge even when the alleged victim does not want the case to go forward.

Because the Commonwealth can go forward without the alleged victim, counsel prepares the defense on the evidence, including the 911 recording, the responding officers’ observations, any prior inconsistent statements, and the layout of the home. The firm’s page on what happens when the alleged victim will not testify explains the limits on the evidence the Commonwealth can use without the alleged victim’s testimony. A married alleged victim may refuse to testify against the defendant in a § 13M case under the spousal privilege in G.L. c. 233, § 20, as the firm’s spousal privilege FAQ explains.

Domestic Violence Penalties in the Malden District Court

A person convicted of a first § 13M offense faces up to 2½ years in the house of correction, a fine of up to $5,000, or both. A second or subsequent § 13M offense is a felony punishable by up to 5 years in state prison. The judge must order a person convicted of a § 13M offense, or placed on probation for a § 13M offense, to complete a certified intimate partner abuse education program, unless the judge makes specific written findings of good cause or the program finds the person unsuitable.

The Commonwealth charges strangulation or suffocation under G.L. c. 265, § 15D when the police report describes pressure on the throat or neck or a blocked nose or mouth. A person convicted of strangulation or suffocation, a felony, faces up to 5 years in state prison, up to 2½ years in the house of correction, a fine of up to $5,000, or both a fine and imprisonment.

A person convicted of violating a 209A restraining order under G.L. c. 209A, § 7 faces up to 2½ years in the house of correction, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.

209A Restraining Orders in Multi-Family Homes

Many 209A restraining orders in the Malden District Court involve parties who share a home in the multi-family housing of Malden and Everett. A judge who issues a temporary order without notice to the defendant may order the defendant to leave the shared home and to stay away from the plaintiff. When the plaintiff shows a substantial likelihood of immediate danger of abuse, the judge must also order the defendant to surrender all firearms, ammunition, and any license to carry or firearms identification card. G.L. c. 209A, § 3B.

Relatives by blood or marriage qualify as family or household members under G.L. c. 209A, § 1, whether or not they live together. A brother on the first floor of a two-family house can therefore seek a 209A restraining order against a sister on the second floor. A neighbor who is not related to the plaintiff and lives in a separate unit does not qualify. The unrelated neighbor must seek a 258E harassment prevention order instead of a 209A restraining order.

The court holds a hearing within ten court business days after a temporary order. G.L. c. 209A, § 4. The plaintiff must prove abuse by a preponderance of the evidence at the hearing. Frizado v. Frizado, 420 Mass. 592 (1995). Counsel at a contested Malden hearing examines the reasonableness of the plaintiff’s claimed fear in the specific living situation, the parties’ prior messages, and any inconsistencies in the application.

A defendant who still lives in the same building as the plaintiff can face a charge of violating the order after a chance meeting in a shared hallway, driveway, or yard. Contact that the plaintiff starts is not a defense to the charge, because only a judge can change or end the order. A defendant who testifies at the 209A restraining order hearing testifies under oath, as the firm’s page on a 209A restraining order and criminal charges from the same incident explains.

Immigrant Communities, Interpreters, and Immigration Consequences

Malden and Everett have large immigrant communities. In Attorney Serpa’s experience, many Malden and Everett defendants are noncitizens. A continuance without a finding after an admission to sufficient facts is a conviction under federal immigration law when the judge imposes probation or another restraint. 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(48)(A). A § 13M conviction can also make a noncitizen deportable.

A noncitizen should have an immigration lawyer review any proposed plea, admission, or continuance without a finding before the judge accepts the plea or admission. A noncitizen whose Malden case ends without a conviction may still have to answer questions about the arrest on an immigration application or at an interview. The firm’s page on domestic violence and immigration states the immigration result for each kind of battery.

Records, Firearms, and Employment

An arraignment creates a public criminal case and a CORI entry. A defendant whose Malden case ends in a dismissal or a nolle prosequi may petition the court to seal the record under G.L. c. 276, § 100C, with no waiting period. Commonwealth v. Pon, 469 Mass. 296 (2014). The abuse designation under G.L. c. 276, § 56A stays in the statewide domestic violence record keeping system after a dismissal.

Federal law, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), prohibits a person convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, including a first offense under § 13M, from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

Massachusetts law bars most employers from asking about an arrest or a charge that did not end in a conviction. G.L. c. 151B, § 4(9). A licensed professional may have to report a domestic assault charge, a conviction, or a continuance without a finding to a licensing board, depending on the board’s rules. Attorney Serpa reviews the board’s question with the client before any plea or admission.

Getting to the Malden District Court

The Malden District Court is at 4040 Mystic Valley Parkway, Medford, MA 02155. The courthouse is open Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The clerk’s office and the probation department both answer at (781) 322-7500.

A parking lot sits at the rear of the building. Wellington station on the MBTA Orange Line is the closest train stop. Many MBTA bus routes stop nearby.

Serpa Law Office has offices in Boston, at 20 Park Plaza, Suite 400A, and in Quincy, at 500 Victory Road, Suite 400A. A person charged with domestic violence in the Malden District Court can call 617.936.0201 or request a consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Serpa Law Office Resources

• Boston Domestic Violence Defense Lawyer
• Malden District Court Criminal Defense
• Somerville Domestic Violence Lawyer
• Cambridge Domestic Violence Lawyer
• Woburn Domestic Violence Lawyer
• Assault and Battery on a Family or Household Member
• A 209A Restraining Order and Criminal Charges From the Same Incident
• Domestic Violence and Immigration Consequences
• Massachusetts Domestic Violence Arrest FAQs