Articles Posted in Sex Crimes

In a case decide today, in L.L., a Juvenile v. Commonwealth, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rules on the standard a juvenile court judge determines the risk of re-offense on the part of a juvenile who committed a ‘sex offense’ that imposes the requirement of sex offender registration.  The SJC ruled that, even as it pertains to juvenile offenders, it is within the judge’s discretion to determine whether the juvenile offender should or should not be relieved of the obligation to register as a sex offender.

In this case, the juvenile was charged in Essex County Juvenile Court as a result of allegations that occurred in Lynn, Massachusetts.  The juvenile was charged with two counts of Indecent Assault & Battery on a Person.  The charges arose from allegations that the juvenile, who was 16 at the time, went up to an adult woman from behind; pulled down her pants; and then made inappropriate comments about her private area while also grabbing his genitals.  A week after this incident, the juvenile did something very similar to a second woman. Continue Reading ›

In a recent appeal concerning a sexual assault case, he Massachusetts Appeals Court considered whether the purported ‘first complaint testimony’ must be remembered by the complainant in order to be admissible against a defendant at trial.

In Commonwealth v. Dale, the defendant appealed from his conviction of indecent assault & battery on a child under 14, arguing that the trial judge improperly admitted ‘first complaint testimony’ by the brother of the victim, who was 7 or 8 at the time of the incident. At trial, the brother testified that, at the time of the incident, the complainant had reported the abuse to him; but the complainant could not recall herself that she had, in fact, reported the abuse to her brother.

In Massachusetts, the first complaint doctrine permits a judge to admit testimony from the recipient of a victim’s initial report of sexual assault. The ‘first complaint witness’, i.e., the person to whom the sexual assault was first reported to, may also testify to the circumstances surrounding the complaint, including observations of the complainant; the events or conversation that culminated; the timing of the complaint; and other relevant conditions that might help the jury assess the truthfulness of the complainant as to the allegations of sexual abuse.

A Boston man was charged this past week with various Massachusetts Sex Crimes Charges involving the alleged sexual assault of a woman in Provincetown on Cape Cod.

The defendant was charged in Orleans District Court with Rape, Indecent Assault & Battery and Distribution of Drugs.

Rape in Massachusetts is defined as the natural or unnatural sexual intercourse with another person by force and against that person’s will, and is punishable by up to 20 years in state prison.

A Lynn priest was arraigned in Lynn District Court on various Massachusetts Sexual Assault Charges for allegedly sexually molesting over several years.

The defendant, Daniel Lopez, was a priest at the Vida Real Internacional Congregation in Lynn. The Essex County District Attorney’s Office alleges that between 2004 and 2008, he sexually assaulted several children who were younger than 9 years old. During that time, he is also alleged to have raped one of those children.

The defendant was arraigned in Lynn District Court and charged with several counts of Indecent Assault & Battery on a Child Under 14 and Rape of a Child by Force.

A 19 year old Framingham man was arrested on various Massachusetts Sex Crimes Charges for allegedly raping a 15 year old girl after she got off the school bus.

The defendant was charged with Aggravated Rape of a Child, Indecent Assault & Battery and Kidnapping.

According to the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, the defendant allegedly accosted the girl after she got off the school bus and forcibly led her into the woods at knifepoint where he raped her. Prosecutors do not believe that the girl knew the defendant and that the incident appeared to be a random attack.

A Braintree karate instructor was arrested by the Braintree Police Department this past weekend on Massachusetts Sex Crimes Charges involving one of his students.

The instructor was arraigned in Quincy District Court on charges including Indecent Assault & Battery on a Child Under 14.

According to the Braintree Police Department and the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office, the karate instructor was giving a 10 year old girl a private lesson when it is alleged that he pulled down her pants. The incident is alleged to have occurred in December.

A city of Lawrence Police Officer was recently arrested on Sex Crimes Charges arising out of an incident in Florida.

Lawrence Police Officer Carlos Gonzalez was arrested last week by Andover Police while attending classes at the Massachusetts School of Law on sex crimes allegations that he committed a sexual assault on a child between the ages of 12 and 18; and serving alcohol to a person under 21.

Detectives from Florida traveled to Massachusetts to issue the arrest warrant on the Lawrence police officer. He was arraigned in Lawrence District Court on a fugitive from justice warrant.

A Malden teenager has been arrested and charged with Massachusetts Sex Crimes Charges for allegedly sexually assault a young child.

The teenager, Robert Guevara, 18, was arrested by the Malden Police Department last week on two counts of Aggravated Rape.

According to the Malden Police Department and the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, the defendant allegedly sexually assaulted the child on various dates between February 2011 and December 2012. Malden Police allege that the teen had access to the child when his mother was entrusted with babysitting the child.

Boston Police arrested a Dorchester man earlier this week for Massachusetts Sex Crimes Charges.

The defendant, who was arraigned in the Dorchester Division of the Boston Municipal Court, was arraigned on sex crimes charges including Human Trafficking for Sexual Servitude and Deriving Support from a Prostitute.

According to the Boston Police Department and the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, police stopped a car for routine civil motor vehicle infractions. A woman passenger in the car who appeared to police to be nervous, was questioned and told police that she had been subjected to prostitution by the defendant. According to the woman, she was forced to buy clothes and take photographs that were posted on various websites advertising escort services.

A 49 year old Wakefield man was arrested earlier this month on 100 counts of Massachusetts Sex Crimes Charges for allegedly raping and sexually abusing 13 children ranging in age from 8 days to 3.5 years old.

The defendant, identified as John Burbine, was charged with several sex offenses including Aggravated Rape of a Child, Indecent Assault & Battery on a Child, Unlawful Possession of Child Pornography; and Dissemination of Obscene Material.

According to the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, the defendant had access to the child victims through the Waterfall Education Center, a child care center that was reportedly run by his wife, Marian Burbine. Middlesex County prosecutors have alleged that the defendant helped his wife at the daycare used that position to sexually abuse the children at the daycare center, which was allegedly not licensed.

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