Articles Posted in Sexual Crimes

Hey, remember when “No” meant “No”? Well, unfortunately, people are still committing sex crimes. So, California is going a step further with its enforcement of such crimes. The state’s new rule will be that “Yes means yes”. By statute, in fact.

Such an approach is not really new. I have handled a number of cases where such allegations have arisen on college campuses. Generally, the burden is shifted to the accused to prove that a given complainant gave an unequivocal “Yes” and, virtually, kept repeating that word in order for the sexual contact not to be a sexual assault.

Now, California has defined just when “yes means yes” and it is aimed at college campuses. The state Senate, which unanimously approved the legislation, believes that the new law will change how campus officials investigate sexual assault allegations. Governor Jerry Brown signed the bill shortly after receiving it.

As we start today’s blog, hoping for a more regular posting schedule than the last couple of weeks (again), we turn to the transition occurring for our kids. Namely, the school year is ending.

This week, I plan to start and end the week with stories related to school-related matters.

We turn first to North Attleboro, Massachusetts. There, a 31-year-old Middle School guidance counselor is facing charges with having sex with a 14-year-old student. At his arraignment last week, he was held on $30,000 bail.

We now return to the predicament I left you in early last week. You can find it here.

A couple of weeks have gone by since your arraignment. The outlook has changed a little bit. While you were muddling through your “adventures” in the local jail, combating isolation, humiliation and fear, you received a visitor. He introduced himself as “Attorney Larry Liberty”. He explained that your family wanted to hire him as your lawyer.

He told you the amount of his fee which you found to be astronomical. He explained to you that the fee would cover both the criminal case as well as the DCF case and that it was a flat fee. You did not understand what a” DCF case” was, but you knew that any progress was likely to be good progress.

In my last blog, I mentioned that I wanted to give you a taste of what it is like to be charged with the particularly nasty crime of sexual assault. In that blog, I described some of the problems you would likely face should the charges against you be dismissed.

Later this week, I plan to update that subject with a case I witnessed only this past week. In the meantime, let’s assume that you have been charged with Massachusetts indecent assault and battery. Assume further that, while you know the man making the allegations, you do not recall attacking him in any way. However, the police called you down to the police stations to “talk” and “get your side of it”.

“Your side” was not too helpful to the Commonwealth and so the response was to take you into custody.

Today, on the Boston Herald website, Bob McGovern has posted a column entitled “Full Court Press: ‘Nolle’ process feels inadequate to innocent”. It is well worth reading and reflects a part of the message which this blog has long been trying to convey.

He tells about Ross Currier, a 26-year-old man who was charged with a recent North End sexual assault. It turns out that, after going through the hell of the kind years can be stripped from your life whatever the result, the Commonwealth said “never mind.” The Commonwealth, apparently realizing that they had the wrong man, issued a “nolle pross”.

A “nolle pross” is basically a dismissal…for now. It is actually a vehicle by which the Commonwealth seems to turn back time and simply withdraws the prosecution. The resulting dismissal is “without prejudice”. This means that the charges can be brought again any time in the future, so long as the statute of limitations has not passed.

Josh Wairi, 27, of Somerville, and hereinafter, the “Defendant”, was arrested Thursday. He is now being held without bail in federal custody until he faces a detention hearing on Wednesday.

We began discussing this case on Friday. The Defendant is/was a 5th grade teacher in Cambridge and has allegedly made all sorts of confessions for some unknown reasons.

As usual, the press have copies of the affidavit filed by law enforcement. Despite the fact that the Defendant is alleged to have admitted guilt, there is much we do not know about this case…including what, if any, defense is planned. While you might not know it to look at it, he is still presumed to be innocent.

Josh Wairi, is/was a 27-year-old Somerville resident and 5th grade teacher at the Garham and Parks School. The school is in my stomping grounds…Cambridge…not far from my primary office. Any thought of presumption of innocence aside, you will not be finding him at that school anymore, at least in the near future.

Mr. Wairi is now also known as the “Defendant”. His case is pending in federal court. The charges involve the possession and dissemination of child pornography. He is further charged with having created such material by recording children changing their clothes. He was arrested yesterday at his home following a federal investigation.

According to law enforcement, the Defendant actually confessed to having been involved in the exchange of child pornography, videos and images, over the Internet.

Ok, it would seem we have the figurative elephant in the room here.

Last week, I referred to the media coverage of a new case of mine that has videos all over the internet. Some of that publicity has brought me various questions from media and responses in the form of hate mail based upon the coverage. Generally, I do not discuss matters in which I am involved in this blog. However, given that my client is interested in making the record a bit clearer than it thus far has been made, I will do so…a little… here.

In case it has not become clear yet, I represent Mr. Daniel Snay who has been arraigned on various charges of alleged sexual assault in Uxbridge.

Have you ever heard the saying “Haste makes Waste”? The wisdom seems to be acknowledged in most circles.

Politics, at least the law enforcement kind, is not one of those circles.

Yesterday, we discussed the recent “up-skirting” controversy. It was one of those situations where there were cries of outrage from the general public when the SJC found that there was no currently created criminal offense which fit the act of up-skirting.

…And continuing in yesterday’s blog’s footsteps, we discuss another case which features a child victim.

At least, so says the Commonwealth.

While everybody else was still reacting to this week’s “up skirt” controversy, Attorney General Martha Coakley announced today the indictment of two Fall River residents for their alleged participation in a human trafficking scheme.