Criminal Law and Procedure
For a captain, criminal procedure is a liability issue as much as a legal one. The exam tests arrest authority, charging decisions, and the paperwork chain that has to survive a suppression motion.
Core rules
- Felony means punishable by state prison; misdemeanor means house of correction. The sentence actually imposed does not change the classification.
- Warrantless misdemeanor arrests generally require the offense to occur in the officer's presence. Statutory exceptions include OUI (G.L. c. 90, § 24) and violations of c. 209A protective orders.
- Warrantless felony arrests require probable cause.
- Misdemeanor prosecutions normally begin with an application for a complaint; the clerk-magistrate may hold a show-cause hearing under G.L. c. 218, § 35A. Felonies proceed by grand jury indictment.
- Bail is governed by G.L. c. 276, § 58; preventive detention by § 58A, with limited periods (120 days, 180 for certain offenses).
- The general felony limitations period is six years under G.L. c. 277, § 63; murder has none.
- Miranda applies to custodial interrogation. Massachusetts separately requires the judge to find voluntariness beyond a reasonable doubt before a statement reaches the jury: the humane practice rule.
Worked example
An officer sees a car cross the center line, smells alcohol, and the driver fails field sobriety tests. The offense occurred in the officer's presence, so a warrantless arrest is lawful. Custody plus questioning about drinking triggers Miranda; performance on field sobriety tests is not testimonial and needs no warning. The citation must issue within four days under c. 90C, § 2 unless a statutory exception applies.
Traps
Treating reasonable suspicion as probable cause; assuming Miranda covers every question an officer asks; and forgetting that an arraigned defendant cannot be questioned without counsel present.