CourtWatchMA
courtwatchma.bsky.social
CourtWatchMA
@courtwatchma.bsky.social
Community volunteers supporting neighbors + shifting power dynamics in #MApoli courts by exposing decisions of judges & prosecutors. @justicehealing @massbailfund
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The federal government shot Marimar Martinez in Brighton Park, charged her with federal crimes, and just weeks later is dismissing the case. This follows several dropped prosecutions against protesters. To say the immigration raids have been all around mess is an understatement
November 20, 2025 at 3:47 PM
"One officer punches the teenager repeatedly in the face, another tries to pull his arms behind his back so he can be handcuffed. A third applies a Taser directly to his back to incapacitate him. The aggressive arrest is documented in [body cam] footage" #mapoli
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/19/m...
Bodycam footage shows intense struggle during teen’s arrest in Webster; police chief defends officers - The Boston Globe
“I will admit, the video does not look pretty," the town's police chief said. "However, anytime officers have to use force, it never does.”
www.bostonglobe.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:38 PM
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www.wbez.org/public-safet... - the fact that this is just regular order really speaks to this country.
Chicago’s top cop pledges to address rise in officers pointing their guns at people
The independent monitor overseeing the city’s consent decree pointed to CPD data showing a nearly 44% increase from 2022 to 2024.
www.wbez.org
November 19, 2025 at 9:51 PM
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Astonishing to stop and realize that, at any given moment, bands of masked men armed to the teeth are storming churches and daycares, terrorizing entire communities—and that most of the country's political establishment barely blinks.
November 19, 2025 at 6:48 PM
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The Webster Police Department released body camera footage this week showing officers punching and using a taser during the arrest of a juvenile.
November 18, 2025 at 10:15 PM
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“I got blamed for reaching for his gun, when I wasn’t reaching for nobody’s gun. They were literally beating me to the ground and I was just trying to protect myself.”

#Webster #Massachusetts
Webster teen detained in violent arrest caught on camera speaks out
Webster Police have released video from an officer’s body-worn camera of the arrest of a teenager in response to cell phone video posted online showing some of what happened.
www.boston25news.com
November 18, 2025 at 10:39 PM
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If true then they really don’t have any power do they? All just one giant farce to appease the masses…
November 19, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Boston OPAT sent a letter to BPD Commissioner Cox lamenting "'widespread refusal' by officers and employees to engage in interviews or cooperate with investigations." And also decried Cox's failure to "respect[] the recommendations made by [OPAT] in regards to discipline matters...” #mapoli #bospoli
November 19, 2025 at 7:13 PM
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NEW: Victor Rosario spent 32 years behind bars for a crime he says he did not commit before a judge overturned his convictions. More than a decade after his release, he returned to MCI Norfolk as a free man. There, he shared a walk—and a message of hope—with his old friends.

#Massachusetts
“Freedom is started from the inside”
Victor Rosario spent 32 years behind bars for a crime he says he did not commit. He returned to prison as a free man to share a walk—and a message of hope—with his old friends.
andrewqmr.substack.com
November 19, 2025 at 4:13 PM
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New in OPINION: Solidarity among groups more crucial than ever amid changed landscape on race

commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/soli...
Solidarity among groups more crucial than ever amid changed landscape on race  - CommonWealth Beacon
Since post-Civil War Reconstruction, history is replete with moments of racial progress followed by backlash and retrenchment led by those benefiting from the status quo. 
commonwealthbeacon.org
November 18, 2025 at 1:35 PM
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“When either they feel like they’re targeted, or they feel like their families are targeted, learning then becomes secondary to whatever worries and stresses that they have...Our kids can’t learn if they’re not here.”
www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/17/m...
Under ICE crackdown, thousands of students have left Mass. public schools - The Boston Globe
A sharp drop in enrollment has hit some of the largest Massachusetts public school districts, including Boston, Framingham, and New Bedford.
www.bostonglobe.com
November 17, 2025 at 12:39 PM
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Official misconduct is found in the vast majority of wrongful convictions out of Boston. These allegations reveal a culture of covering up misconduct rather than holding officers accountable. Lies in police reports, like the ones here, cause people to lose their freedom, family, & lives. Shameful.
November 15, 2025 at 2:50 AM
"A veteran Boston Police Department (BPD) Captain is suing the department’s highest-ranking officials, alleging he was pressured to scrub a finding that a rookie officer lied in a police report and an internal affairs interview." #mapoli #bospoli

www.boston25news.com/news/local/l...
Lawsuit claims BPD commissioner shielded officer from lying charge
A veteran Boston Police Department (BPD) Captain is suing the department’s highest-ranking officials, alleging he was pressured to scrub a finding that a rookie officer lied in a police report and an ...
www.boston25news.com
November 15, 2025 at 2:22 AM
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From this minister's op-ed: "People wanting to experience God are more likely to meet the Divine trying to shut down the Broadview, Illinois, ICE facility than we ever were in church...God does not live in our houses of worship, but...with those who are bearing the brunt of cruelty in this moment."
Oh wow @reuters.com got the photo here:
November 14, 2025 at 9:38 PM
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So-called conviction integrity units have been deeply disappointing, not only for their failure to undo individual injustices but their refusal to confront systemic ones. We can not rely on prosecutors to voluntarily pursue justice, but we continue to demand justice from all who stand in its way.
An advocate for conviction integrity units says that the fact that Cook County’s Conviction Integrity Unit hasn’t exonerated anyone in a year is a serious disappointment. “It makes no sense.”
Exonerations Grind to a Halt Under Chicago’s New Prosecutor
Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke has weakened her office’s already broken system for freeing the innocent, even as allegations of coercion mount against a former Chicago detective.
boltsmag.org
November 11, 2025 at 1:29 AM
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Another one of the Allston Car Wash 9 to be shipped out of state, but at least she'll get a bed
www.universalhub.com/2025/another...
#Boston #immigrants #ICE
November 13, 2025 at 8:10 PM
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According to the car wash owner, agents arrested employees before they could obtain their documentation from their work lockers. So many were likely here legally.

Here's hoping this article on Zac boasting about how he ruined some immigrants' lives follows him around for a very long time.
BU College Republicans president says he called ICE to ‘detain these criminals’ at Allston Car Wash
The president of Boston University College Republicans wrote on X he called the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement requesting it detain employees at Allston Car Wash, the site of a Nov. 4 raid w...
dailyfreepress.com
November 13, 2025 at 4:03 PM
“None of my three family members has any criminal history. Their only crime is being immigrants,” she said through a translator. “We came here to work, and instead, we are fighting racism day after day.” #mapoli #bospoli
www.boston25news.com/news/local/r...
Relative of detained Allston workers shares message for BU student who called ICE
A family member of three workers who were detained by federal agents is sharing a message for a BU student who called ICE repeatedly.
www.boston25news.com
November 14, 2025 at 8:15 PM
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Operation Stonegarden, the classic "we are coopting local police for border policing but pretending we are not" strategy
November 12, 2025 at 3:18 PM
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Two of the Allston Car Wash 9 could soon be freed - but first are being shipped out of state
www.universalhub.com/2025/two-all...
#Boston #immigrants #ICE
November 11, 2025 at 4:28 AM
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I received this email about Democrats caving to end the shutdown from one of the SNAP recipients I spoke to:
November 10, 2025 at 2:17 PM
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Today, the Supreme Court rejected a call to overturn the landmark ruling that legalized same-sex marriage more than a decade ago.

This is a victory — but it’s also a reminder that the rights of every person are under threat. We must remain vigilant and continue fighting for equality.
November 10, 2025 at 5:54 PM
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Today's blog post: Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Recognizes Doctrine of Transferred Intent Self-Defense: tinyurl.com/yckchjf5
Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts Recognizes Doctrine of Transferred Intent Self-Defense
Courts across the country recognize the doctrine of transferred intent. For example, imagine that Dana shoots at Victoria with the intent to kill her, but
tinyurl.com
October 27, 2025 at 5:29 PM
Important decision last week from the MA Appeals Court. A defense attorney's racist social media posts created an actual conflict of interest with his Black client even without a specific showing of biased acts against the client during the representation. Remanded for new trial. #mapoli #bospoli
#LegalEthics Tidbit: Can I waive the conflict caused by my criminal defense lawyer’s racism?

In Commonwealth v. Dew, 492 Mass. 254 (2023) the MA Supreme Judicial Court held that a criminal defense lawyer’s manifestations of racial bias in social ... (cont.)

www.linkedin.com/posts/davidk...
#law
November 10, 2025 at 1:56 PM
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ACLU of MA has filed a brief with the SJC in support of the constitutional right to counsel.
The Court should declare the current compensation scheme for bar advocates unconstitutional, and establish an immediate, temporary rate to address this violation until the Legislature develops a solution.
November 5, 2025 at 7:52 PM