Opinion

Commonwealth v. Muse

  • 35 Mass. App. Ct. 466
  • 622 N.E.2d 640
  • 1993 Mass. App. LEXIS 1035
Court
Massachusetts Appeals Court
Filed
Nov 10, 1993
Status
Published
Author
Brown
On the bench
Brown, Fine
Cited by
1 cases
Authority
More cited than 10.9%

The opinion

Brown, J.

(concurring). Inadequate or defective police procedures (see ante at 470 n.1) are one thing, but the real vice here is the Commonwealth’s decision to correct the defect by unfair means. Why can’t the Commonwealth get it right? All defendants have a constitutionally guaranteed right to a fair trial, and it is the Commonwealth’s responsibility “to strive earnestly to produce as close to an impeccable trial as is possible.” Commonwealth v. Harris, 28 Mass. App. Ct. 724, 736 (1990) (Brown, J., concurring). I am certain this has been said more than a few times over the years. See, e.g., Commonwealth v. McLeod, 30 Mass. App. Ct. 536 , 541 n.10 (1991), and cases cited therein. See also Commonwealth v. Harris, supra at 736 n.5.

Finally, my belief that thoughtlessness and lack of careful preparation rather than contrived unfairness precipitate the vast majority of the alleged errors presented on appeal still *473 remains, see (Commonwealth v. Young, 22 Mass. App. Ct. 452, 457 (1986) (Brown, J., concurring), but after nearly two decades of seeing the same transgressions continuously occurring, I must say that I am starting to have genuine doubts. Our profession and society deserve much better from public prosecutors.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

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