Massachusetts DUI Blog

The Massachusetts State Police recently announced that a “Sobriety Checkpoint” will be implemented by the State Police beginning Friday, May 21, 2010 and continuing into Saturday, May 22, 2010. The roadblock will take place at an undisclosed secondary state highway in Hampden County. Hampden County is comprised of Springfield, Chicopee, Hoyoke, Wilbraham, Westfield, and several other towns.

The State Police often team up with local law enforcement when operating these checkpoints, which may utilize over a dozen officers at a time as well as mobile breath testing equipment. Many of these roadblocks are part of the nationwide “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” mobilization, for which state and federal grant money is used to fund police overtime, equipment and education.

The constitutionality of these sobriety checkpoints were recently upheld by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. However, the police must strictly comply with the many requirements that the Court has outlined in order for them to survive constitutional challenges, and the failure to do so may result in the exclusion of all evidence obtained against a defendant.

If you are arrested following a roadblock or “sobriety checkpoint,” contact an attorney who knows how to defend these cases successfully. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0555.

The Massachusetts State Police have announced that a “sobriety checkpoint” will be implemented on a secondary state highway on Saturday, May 22, 2010 into Sunday, May 23, 2010. The roadblock will take place on a secondary state highway in Middlesex County. Middlesex County is the largest county in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, consisting of numerous cities and towns including Cambridge, Newton, Somerville, Lowell, and Framingham.

The State Police often team up with local law enforcement when operating these checkpoints, which may utilize over a dozen officers at a time as well as mobile breath testing equipment. Many of these roadblocks are part of the nationwide “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” mobilization, for which state and federal grant money is used to fund police overtime, equipment and education.

In 2009, the constitutionality of these checkpoints was again called into question, but the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rejected the challenge. However, the police must strictly comply with the many requirements that the Court has outlined, and the failure to do so may result in the exclusion of all evidence obtained against a defendant.

If you are arrested following a roadblock or “sobriety checkpoint,” contact an attorney who knows how to defend these cases successfully. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0555.

The Massachusetts State Police have announced that a “sobriety checkpoint” will be implemented on a secondary state highway on Friday, March 26, 2010 into Saturday, March 27, 2010 in Worcester County.

The State Police often team up with local law enforcement when operating the checkpoints, which may utilize over a dozen officers at a time as well as mobile breath testing equipment. Many of these roadblocks are part of the nationwide “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” mobilization, for which state and federal grant money is used to fund police overtime, equipment and education.

In 2009, the constitutionality of these checkpoints was again called into question, but the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rejected the challenge. However, the police must strictly comply with the many requirements that the Court has outlined, and the failure to do so may result in the exclusion of all evidence obtained against a defendant.

If you are arrested following a roadblock or “sobriety checkpoint,” contact an attorney who knows how to defend these cases successfully. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0555.

The Massachusetts State Police have announced that it will implement a sobriety checkpoint for Saturday, May 8, 2010. The roadblock will take place at various hours, and will continue into Sunday, May 9, 2010. The checkpoint will be set up on a secondary state highway in Essex County. Essex County is made up of cities and towns north of Boston, from Amesbury and Danvers to Gloucester and Marblehead.

The State Police often team up with local law enforcement when operating these checkpoints, which may utilize over a dozen officers at a time as well as mobile breath testing equipment. Many of these roadblocks are part of the nationwide “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” mobilization, for which state and federal grant money is used to fund police overtime, equipment and education.

The constitutionality of these sobriety checkpoints were recently upheld by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. However, the police must strictly comply with the many requirements that the Court has outlined in order for them to survive constitutional challenges, and the failure to do so may result in the exclusion of all evidence obtained against a defendant.

If you are arrested following a roadblock or “sobriety checkpoint,” contact an attorney who knows how to defend these cases successfully. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0555.

On Thursday, April 29, 2010, the Massachusetts State Police announced that it will conduct a sobriety checkpoint on Friday, May 7 into Saturday, May 8, 2010. The roadblock will take place during varied hours on a secondary state highway in Norfolk County. Norfolk County is comprised of over a dozen cities and towns, including Quincy, Weymouth, Brookline, Dedham, Needham, Canton, Cohasset, Milton, and Plainville.

The State Police often team up with local law enforcement officers when conducting these sobriety checkpoints. Portable breath testing equipment and mobile facilities for booking arrestees are deployed at the scene. Federal grant funding is often used, as part of the nationwide “over the limit, under arrest” mobilization.

If you are arrested following a sobriety checkpoint, contact attorneys who know how to defend these cases. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0556.

The Massachusetts State Police recently announced that a “Sobriety Checkpoint” will be implemented by the State Police beginning Friday, April 30 and continuing into Saturday, May 1, 2010. The roadblock will take place at an undisclosed secondary state highway in Hampden County. Hampden County is comprised of Springfield, Chicopee, Hoyoke, Wilbraham, Westfield, and several other towns.

The State Police often team up with local law enforcement when operating these checkpoints, which may utilize over a dozen officers at a time as well as mobile breath testing equipment. Many of these roadblocks are part of the nationwide “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” mobilization, for which state and federal grant money is used to fund police overtime, equipment and education.

The constitutionality of these sobriety checkpoints were recently upheld by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. However, the police must strictly comply with the many requirements that the Court has outlined in order for them to survive constitutional challenges, and the failure to do so may result in the exclusion of all evidence obtained against a defendant.

If you are arrested following a roadblock or “sobriety checkpoint,” contact an attorney who knows how to defend these cases successfully. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0555.

On Friday, April 23, the Massachusetts State Police just announced a second DUI roadblock for this coming weekend. This sobriety checkpoint will take place at various hours beginning Saturday, April 24, 2010 and continuing into Sunday, April 25, 2010. While the previously-announced roadblock will take place somewhere in Middlesex County, this recently-announced one will be in Essex County. Essex County is made up of cities and towns north of Boston, from Amesbury and Danvers to Gloucester and Marblehead.

The Massachusetts State Police have announced that a “sobriety checkpoint” will be implemented on a secondary state highway on Saturday, April 23, 2010 into Sunday, April 24, 2010. The roadblock will take place on a secondary state highway in Middlesex County. Middlesex County is the largest county in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, consisting of numerous cities and towns including Cambridge, Newton, Somerville, Lowell, and Framingham.

The State Police often team up with local law enforcement when operating these checkpoints, which may utilize over a dozen officers at a time as well as mobile breath testing equipment. Many of these roadblocks are part of the nationwide “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” mobilization, for which state and federal grant money is used to fund police overtime, equipment and education.

In 2009, the constitutionality of these checkpoints was again called into question, but the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rejected the challenge. However, the police must strictly comply with the many requirements that the Court has outlined, and the failure to do so may result in the exclusion of all evidence obtained against a defendant.

If you are arrested following a roadblock or “sobriety checkpoint,” contact an attorney who knows how to defend these cases successfully. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0555.

The Massachusetts State Police recently announced that it would conduct a DUI sobriety checkpoint beginning Friday, April 16, 2010 and continuing into Saturday, April 17, 2010. The roadblock will take place during varied hours on a secondary state highway in Bristol County. Bristol County is made up of twenty cities and towns, including Taunton, Raynham, Rehoboth, Fall River and New Bedford.
The State Police often team up with local law enforcement when operating these checkpoints, which may utilize over a dozen officers at a time as well as mobile breath testing equipment. Many of these roadblocks are part of the nationwide “Over The Limit, Under Arrest” mobilization. State and federal grant money is used to fund police overtime, equipment and education.

The constitutionality of these checkpoints were recently upheld by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. However, the police must strictly comply with the many requirements that the Court has outlined, and the failure to do so may result in the exclusion of all evidence obtained against a defendant.

If you are arrested following a “sobriety checkpoint,” contact an attorney who knows how to defend these cases successfully. Call Brooks & Crowley LLP at 781-251-0555.

In the recent case of Padilla v. Kentucky, decided March 31, 2010 (read the full text of the opinion here), the United States Supreme Court held that an attorney’s failure to properly advise his client that a guilty plea carried a risk of deportation was a violation of the client’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel. This 7-2 decision means that, as a matter of federal law, counsel must correctly inform a client when a guilty plea carries a risk of deportation. Unlike past cases, where the Court stated that immigration consequences are a “collateral matter” and not directly related to the court’s disposition of a case, the Padilla Court stated that deportation is an “integral part” of the penalty that may be imposed on a non-citizen defendant who pleads guilty to specified crimes.

Padilla, a lawful United States resident for 40 years, pleaded guilty to drug charges in Kentucky after he was incorrectly advised by his attorney that he did not have to worry about deportation. In fact, Padilla’s deportation was mandatory under federal law. The Kentucky Supreme Court rejected Padilla’s claim of ineffective assistance of counsel on the grounds that deportation was a “collateral” matter. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that Padilla sufficiently alleged a constitutional violation, because deportation is “intimately related to the criminal process.”

While the prevailing viewpoint in Massachusetts is that first offense DUI convictions alone would not typically result in deportation proceedings in the absence of substantial aggravating factors, third or greater offense DUI’s are felonies under Massachusetts and federal law and certainly carry such a risk. For this reason, the immigration consequences of DUI convictions must be considered in all cases where deportation may result.