Commonwealth v. A.M. – Brockton District Court

ATTORNEY PATRICK J. NOONAN WINS NOT GUILTY VERDICT IN 2ND OFFENSE OUI-LIQUOR TRIAL DESPITE CIVILIAN WITNESS TESTIFYING TO DEFENDANT’S DANGEROUS OPERATION, A WASHER MACHINE FELL OFF THE BACK OF DEFENDANT’S TRUCK, POLICE FOUND TWO NIPS BOTTLES IN DEFENDANT’S POCKETS AND A RUM BOTTLE IN HIS CENTER-CONSOLE AND THE OFFICER TESTIFIED THAT THE DEFENDANT WAS INTOXICATED.

At trial in the Brockton District Court, a civilian witness testified that she called 911 to report the erratic operation of the Defendant’s vehicle in Brockton. She testified that the Defendant’s truck nearly struck her vehicle. Alarmed by his operation, she turned around, followed Defendant’s vehicle and called 911. Brockton Police encountered the Defendant’s vehicle at a four-way intersection in Brockton. Officers observed the Defendant quickly accelerate through the intersection, causing a washer machine to fall off the back of the Defendant’s truck, landing in the intersection. Officers approached the Defendant’s vehicle and removed him from the truck. Officers observed a Rum bottle in the center-console that was partially empty. Officers found two Fireball nip bottles in the Defendant’s pant pockets. The Officer testified that the Defendant had an odor of alcohol on his breath, he momentarily lost his balance, and, in the officer’s opinion, Defendant was intoxicated. Defendant had a prior conviction for OUI-Liquor and he was charged with Operating under the Influence of Liquor (2nd offense). See G.L. c. 90, §24. A conviction for a second-offense OUI carries the following penalties: up to 2 ½ years in jail, possibility of two years of probation, 14-day inpatient treatment, and two-year loss of license. In this case, Defendant’s driver’s license was suspended for three years because he refused the Breathalyzer test. Rather than take a plea deal, Attorney Patrick J. Noonan brought the case to trial.

Result: After a two-day jury trial, Attorney Patrick J. Noonan attacked the prosecution’s case. The prosecution called two police officers to testify against the Defendant. However, Attorney Noonan called a police officer witness of his own. Specifically, Attorney Noonan called the Lieutenant who booked the Defendant. The Lieutenant outranked and had more experience than the two officers who testified for the prosecution. The Lieutenant testified that he was unable to form an opinion that the Defendant was intoxicated. In fact, on cross-examination of one of the prosecution’s officers, Attorney Noonan got the prosecution’s own officer to testify that he did not form an opinion that the Defendant was intoxicated. In his closing, Attorney Noonan argued that two out of the three officers who testified in the case did not, or could not, form an opinion that the Defendant was intoxicated. Attorney Noonan called the Defendant’s cousin as a witness and he testified that the Rum bottle, in the Defendant’s vehicle, belonged to him, and not the Defendant. The jury found the Defendant not guilty.