Case Results
Commonwealth v. P.C. – Framingham District Court
NO CRIMINAL COMPLAINT ISSUED AGAINST FORMER MARINE AND RETIRED BUSINESS OWNER FOR OPERATING WITH A SUSPENDED LICENSE
Client is a 77 year-old retired business owner who owned commercial real estate in a shopping center he operated for decades. He was a former special police officer in Natick and Framingham. He was very active in the community. Unfortunately, he amassed a series of motor vehicle offenses, and received three prior tickets for speeding, improper passing, and marked lanes violations. Due to the multitude of driving violations, the client’s license was suspended and he was required to driving classes in order to get his license reinstated. While his license was suspended, client drove his vehicle to do some errands and was pulled over for speeding and was charged with Operating after Suspended License.
Result: At the Clerk Magistrate Hearing, Attorney Gerald J. Noonan persuaded the Clerk Magistrate to dismiss the criminal complaint so long as the client completes a driving course.
Commonwealth v. N.T. – Wareham District Court
FELONY THEFT CHARGE AGAINST UNITED STATES POSTAL WORKER FOR STEALING MAIL IS DISMISSED AFTER A CLERK MAGISTRATE HEARING
A named victim called the Wareham Police to report that a Best Buy gift card that he purchased and mailed to his son had been stolen. Police found that the Defendant had stolen and used the Best Buy card. Specifically, police obtained surveillance video showing the Defendant using the stolen Best Buy Card at a Best Buy store. It was learned that the Defendant, a United States Postal Worker, had stolen the Best Buy card from the envelope that it had been mailed in. The intended recipient’s mailing address for the Best Buy gift card was on the Defendant’s assigned route. The U.S. Postal Service conducted a sting investigation to catch the Defendant in the act of stealing mail. They placed a red envelope, containing cash, in the mail for the Defendant’s mailing route. They put an address on the green envelope, which was not on the Defendant’s assigned route. Per procedure, the Defendant was supposed to have returned the green envelope to the Post Office, as it was not in the Defendant’s assigned route. Undercover postal investigators observed the Defendant preparing to leave in her personal vehicle. The postal investigators recovered the red envelope in the Defendant’s personal vehicle.
Result: Attorney Gerald J. Noonan was successful in getting the criminal complaint not to issue against his client. Attorney Noonan argued that his client did not have the intent necessary to commit the larceny of the red envelope, as it did not appear as though the Defendant knew what was inside the red envelope and the Defendant did not have a sufficient opportunity to return the envelope pursuant to postal procedure. This was a very serious charge because it dealt with a theft of federal proportions from the United States Mail by a United States Postal Worker.
Commonwealth v. E.M. – Brockton District Court
LARCENY CHARGE AGAINST PARAMEDIC AND BRIDGEWATER STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENT DISMISSED AFTER CLERK MAGISTRATE HEARING
Brockton Police were dispatched to Auto Zone for a reported larceny. Upon arrival, police spoke to the calling party who was an employee working at the cash register. The employee reported that the Defendant came to this register and attempted to purchase three items on his credit card. The cashier told the Defendant that his credit card was declined at which time the Defendant grabbed the items and quickly headed for the door. The cashier yelled to the Defendant, approximately six times, for him to stop and come back into the store. The Defendant fled the store in his vehicle but the cashier wrote down his license plate. The cashier was able to identify the Defendant through the information on his Auto Zone reward card. The officer ran the license plate, which came back to the Defendant. The officer showed a picture of the Defendant’s driver license to the cashier, who immediately identified him as the suspect.
Result: Attorney Gerald J. Noonan persuaded the Clerk Magistrate to dismiss the criminal complaint upon the Defendant’s payment of restitution to Auto Zone for the stolen items. Attorney Gerald J. Noonan saves his client, a paramedic and college student at Bridgewater State University, from having a criminal record.
Commonwealth v. John Joyce – Stoughton District Court
IN A MANSLAUGHTER INVESTIGATION FOR A DRUG OVERDOSE, ATTORNEY PATRICK J. NOONAN GETS SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE SUPPRESSED, INCLUDING: SEARCH OF DEFENDANT’S CELL PHONE, SEARCH OF DEFENDANT’S HOME, AND INCRIMINATING STATEMENTS MADE BY DEFENDANT. LAWYER’S WEEKLY PUBLICATION DID A FEATURE ON THE CASE FOR ITS SIGNIFICANCE.
Police responded to a private residence for a drug overdose. Upon arrival to the scene, police found a male lying on the floor of his living room dead of a drug overdose. Police searched the deceased’s pockets and found a rolled up $20 bill with brown residue on the tip of it. Police also found on the deceased’s pocket a folded $20 bill and Keno ticket containing brown powder. The brown powder tested positive for heroin. Police searched the deceased’s cell phone and found text messages with the Defendant showing that the two had met the night before the overdose. Police used the deceased’s cell phone, posing as the deceased, and contacted the Defendant by text message and asked to buy some drugs from the Defendant. Police instructed the Defendant to bring the drugs to a parking lot. Upon Defendant’s arrival to the parking lot, Defendant is immediately arrested as soon as he exits his vehicle. Police search the Defendant’s vehicle and find heroin. Defendant is brought to the Stoughton Police Station where he is interrogated by police. In the interrogation, Defendant tells police that he has heroin and pills in his bedroom. The Defendant signed a form giving police permission to search his home. The Defendant also signs another form giving police permission to search his cell phone. Subsequently, police searched the Defendant’s home where they found heroin and pills. Police intended to use the Defendant’s cell phone records to prove that the Defendant sold the heroin, which caused the deceased to die from a drug overdose. Police intended to use the evidence they obtained from the Defendant to charge him with Manslaughter for having caused the death of the deceased.
Result: Attorney Patrick J. Noonan filed a Motion to Suppress Evidence in which he sought to suppress the following evidence: statements made by Defendant to police during the interrogation, defendant’s consent for police to search his home, and defendant’s consent for police to search his cell phone. After four hearings, Attorney Patrick J. Noonan proved that the evidence was illegally obtained by police. Attorney Noonan proved that the statements made by the Defendant during the police interrogation should have been suppressed because he clearly invoked his right to remain silent and his right to an attorney but the police continued to question him anyway in violation of his constitutional rights. Attorney Patrick J. Noonan proved that the Defendant’s consent for the police to search his home and cell phone was invalid because the Defendant’s consent was not given freely or voluntarily. Specifically, Defendant had never been arrested before, he had no prior involvement with police, and he was unfamiliar with the criminal justice system. On top of that, Defendant had been tasered by police prior to the interrogation and Defendant remained handcuffed during the interrogation. Officers admitted that the interrogation was aggressive, at times, and involved yelling. The Defendant’s consent to search his home was not voluntary, as there was evidence that police used the Defendant’s mother as a way to coax him into consenting to a search of his home. Defendant lived with his mother and he was concerned for his mother’s well-being should the police show up at her house, unannounced, and start searching throughout the home. In essence, police told the Defendant that things would be easier for his mother if he simply consented to a search of his bedroom.
See Lawyer’s Weekly Article about the case, “Search results from residence, cell suppressed (.pdf)”
Commonwealth v. O.M. – Brockton District Court
CHARGES DISMISSED AT CLERK’S HEARING FOR ACCIDENT CAUSING INJURIES TO PEDESTRIANS
Our client was charged with Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle and Marked Lanes Violation as a result of a car accident. Witnesses reported to police that our client’s vehicle turned into a parking lot, drove through a parking space, struck a wooden pillar, went through some bushes, and struck two pedestrians before crashing into a building.
Result: At the Clerk Magistrate Hearing, the injured pedestrians appeared and wanted additional criminal charges brought against the client. Attorney Gerald J. Noonan argued that his client was responsible for causing the accident but she should not be charged criminally because the case was being resolved through his client’s car insurance. Attorney Noonan presented evidence showing that his client’s insurance accepted fault for the accident and his client’s insurance policy had ample coverage to compensate the victims for their injuries.
Commonwealth v. S.K. Boston Municipal Court
CHARGES OF USING A FAKE I.D. AND UNDERAGE DRINKING ARE DISMISSED AGAINST EMERSON COLLEGE STUDENT
Boston Police went to The Tam, a bar on Tremont Street in Boston, to conduct a licensed premises inspection. While surveilling the crowd of patrons drinking at the bar, police noticed a patron (our client), who looked underage, drinking a Rolling Rock beer. Police approached our client and asked him for proof of his age. Our client handed the officer an I.D. that was fake. Our client admitted to the officers that it was a fake I.D. and provided his real driver’s license showing that he was under the age of 21.
Result: At the Clerk’s Hearing, Attorney Gerald J. Noonan presented character evidence showing that his client was a good kid, who made a stupid mistake, and should be given a break. Attorney Noonan introduced his client’s transcript at Emerson College showing that he was a Dean’s List student. Attorney Noonan presented a letter from one of our client’s professors at Emerson College attesting to his good character, work ethic, and how great of a student he was. Our client is majoring in Sports Communications and wishes to someday become a sport’s broadcaster.
Commonwealth v. P.G. – New Bedford District Court
SEXUAL ASSAULT CHARGES AND ALLEGATIONS OF CHILD RAPE ARE DISMISSED ON DAY OF TRIAL, AS ATTORNEY PATRICK J. NOONAN WAS ARMED WITH EVIDENCE SHOWING THE VICTIM WAS SEXUALLY ABUSED BY HIS BIOLOGICAL FATHER, AND NOT THE DEFENDANT.
The alleged victim (A.V.) was the Defendant’s step-son who he helped raise since the child was very young. Defendant and A.V.’s mother divorced. After the divorce, Defendant had no contact with A.V. or his ex-wife. Approximately seven years later, A.V. accused the Defendant of sexually abusing him even though he had not seen him for many years. Through investigation, Attorney Patrick J. Noonan learned that A.V. had a long history of engaging in sexually inappropriate behavior. A.V. got into trouble in daycare for engaging in sexual behavior with other children. A.V. got into trouble for engaging in sexual behavior with a neighbor. A.V. got into trouble, several times, at school for engaging in sexual behavior with other kids. Whenever A.V. got into trouble for his sexual misconduct, he was sent to therapy. Eventually, A.V.’s sexualized behavior escalated to the point where he sexually assaulted another student and, as a result, A.V. was criminally charged for his conduct. When A.V. was being interrogated by police after being charged for his own criminal conduct, A.V. accused the Defendant, for the first time, of sexually abusing him, even though A.V. had not seen the Defendant in seven years.
Result: Attorney Patrick J. Noonan conducted an investigation and gathered records of A.V.’s therapy sessions with various social workers and mental health counselors. Attorney Patrick J. Noonan discovered that A.V.’s counselors believed that A.V. was being sexually abused by his biological father, and not the Defendant. Attorney Noonan obtained records from the Department of Children and Families showing that A.V.’s mother reported her concerns that A.V.’s biological father might be sexually abusing him. On the day of trial, Attorney Patrick J. Noonan had two of A.V.’s therapists ready to testify that, in their opinion, A.V. was being sexually abused by his biological father, and not the Defendant. Attorney Noonan was prepared to prove that the real abuser was A.V.’s biological father, not the Defendant. Attorney Noonan was prepared to show that A.V. had a motive to falsely accuse the Defendant of abusing him because A.V. was too afraid to tell police or others that it was his biological father who had been abusing him.
Commonwealth v. K.T. – Somerville District Court
ASSAULT & BATTERY CHARGE AGAINST VIETNAMESE NAIL TECHNICIAN DISMISSED AT CLERK’S HEARING, AS ATTORNEY GERALD J. NOONAN PRESENTS EVIDENCE THAT HIS CLIENT ACTED IN SELF-DEFENSE
The Client is a 32 year-old Vietnamese woman with no criminal record. She works six days a week as a nail technician to support her family, which includes two children, one of whom is severely autistic. On the date of the incident, the client, her husband, and two children were sitting in their SUV in the parking lot of a Starbucks. Her husband, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, was programming an address into the GPS. Meanwhile, a female in a vehicle was waiting to use the client’s parking space. The female operator began to beep her horn and was motioning for the client to back out of the parking space. The client’s severely autistic son became upset, as the other woman was beeping of the horn. The client rolled down the window and told the female to wait but the other female yelled that to the client that she was taking up two parking spaces. The client exited her vehicle and approached the other female and a heated argument ensued. The client claims that the other female made a racial slur, saying: “Go back to where you came from!” The verbal argument turned physical. The female told police that the client punched her, grabbed her, and pulled her. The officer observed that the female was bleeding and had swelling and redness under her left eye. However, the female did admit to the police officer that there was mutual fighting between her and the client. The officer then spoke to the client who stated that the female kicked her in the leg. The officer observed bruises to the client’s leg. The officer charged our client with Assault and Battery for having punched the other female in the face.
Result: At the Clerk Magistrate Hearing, Attorney Gerald J. Noonan argued that his client acted in self-defense when she struck the other female. The police was vague as to who struck who first. The police report did not contain any concrete evidence showing that the client struck first. The police report did give the impression that the fighting was mutual. Attorney Noonan pointed out that the officer also charged the other female with Assault & Battery with a Dangerous Weapon for having kicked the client with her shoe. After the hearing, the Clerk Magistrate declined to issue the complaint against our client.
Commonwealth v. P.M. – Wrentham District Court
IMPROPER STORAGE OF A FIREARM AGAINST MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIST DISMISSED, AS ATTORNEY GERALD J. NOONAN ARGUES THAT THE FIREARMS WERE INOPERABLE, HEIRLOOMS, WHICH WERE PASSED DOWN BY HIS GRANDFATHER.
Client’s ex-wife obtained a 209A abuse prevention order against her ex-husband, the Defendant. Franklin Police went to the Defendant’s home in Franklin to serve him with the restraining order and to seize his firearms. Police observed that the firearms were in a case but not properly secured and they charged the client with Improper Storage of a Firearm (G.L. c. 140, §131L)
Result: Client received a summons to appear in Wrentham District Court for an arraignment on the charge of Improper Storage of a Firearm. Client immediately retained Gerald J. Noonan who was able to dismiss the criminal complaint prior to arraignment on the grounds that his client was entitled to a clerk-magistrate’s hearing prior to the issuance of any criminal charge. If the client were arraigned, the gun charge would be on his record. At the clerk’s hearing, Attorney Noonan argued that the firearms were inoperable. The firearms were passed down to the client by his deceased grandfather. Client never fired the guns nor did he have any ammunition for the guns. The client was planning on selling the firearms to a dealer and using the money to make a down payment on a new house. Client was a Medical Technologist and biomedical laboratory technician. Client had no criminal record. The clerk magistrate decided to hold the matter open for a period of time and so long as the client stays out of trouble the charge will be dismissed.