Erin Harris

After a Motion to Suppress, the Court ruled that the Defendant's request to suppress any and all out of court and in court identifications by the car owner was allowed. Additionally, the statements of the Defendant after his arrest were similarly suppressed at the request of Attorney Harris. At a subsequent bench trial in the West Roxbury Division of the Boston Municipal Court, the Commonwealth elicited testimony from three witnesses in an attempt to establish that the defendant was a passenger in a motor vehicle when it was involved in a single car crash five hours after it was stolen. After trial, Judge Shoptease found that the defendant was Not Guilty of the single charge of knowingly receiving a stolen motor vehicle.

Successfully defended a client against charges of Larceny, Forgery, and Uttering in the West Roxbury Division of the Boston Municipal Court in December 2013.  A required finding of Not Guilty was entered by the trial judge on both Larceny and Forgery. The jury returned a verdict of Not Guilty on the one remaining count of Uttering.

I recently obtained a $100,000 settlement for a personal injury client prior to filing a lawsuit. The client, an elderly woman, suffered serious personal injuries as a result of being knocked over by an employee/agent at a local hospital.  Her injuries included a fractured wrist and head contusion that led to a lengthy stay at a rehabilitation facility.  Although nothing could ever fully compensate the client for loss of quality of life that her injuries caused, this settlement is a first step towards her regaining her independence.

It has recently come to light that a chemist at the drug lab in Jamaica Plain mishandled drug evidence, altered the weight of drugs, failed to calibrate the testing machines correctly, and even manipulated samples to get positive results for illegal narcotics when the sample that was submitted to the lab was in fact not an illegal substance.

The Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts made it harder for individuals who need court-appointed legal representation to get it in two separate decisions that came down yesterday. The Court ruled that "a criminal defendant who seeks to have counsel appointed at public expense bears the burden of proving indigency by a preponderance of the evidence." Commonwealth v. Porter. In evaluating the individual's income and ability to pay, the Court will consider the spouse's (or live-in significant other's) income and assets.  If a parent is substantially supporting the individual seeking assigned counsel, that parent's financial situation shall be considered as well in making an indigency determination..  Commonwealth v. Fico.  Be prepared to show documentation regarding the bills and expenses that you have, whether or not the other individuals in your household are willing and able to  contribute to your legal defense funds, and the value and ease of liquidity of any property that you may own.