Stay updated with breaking news from Civil Practice. Get real-time updates on events, politics, business, and more. Visit us for reliable news and exclusive interviews.
Where a jury found a defendant to be a sexually dangerous person, the defendant is entitled to a new trial because an instruction defining the term “menace” as applied to noncontact offenses was warranted. “After a jury trial in the Superior Court, the defendant was found to be a sexually dangerous person (SDP), and was
Where a respondent has filed an appeal challenging an order of involuntary medical treatment under G.L.c. 123, §8B, that order should be affirmed because there was no error in the court’s determination that the respondent was incompetent and that, if competent, the respondent would choose to take antipsychotic medication. “Here, the record reflects sufficient evidence
Where a judge issued and extended a G.L.c. 209A order requiring a defendant to stay away from the plaintiff, her former roommate, the order and its extension must be vacated because the plaintiff did not prove that the defendant’s actions or statements placed him in reasonable fear of imminent serious physical harm. “The parties are
Where a judge granted a commitment petition, the judge’s finding that the respondent was dangerous to others was neither clearly erroneous nor inconsistent with the relevant legal standards, so the commitment order should be affirmed. “Cambridge Hospital (the ‘hospital’) petitioned to commit J.C. pursuant to G.L.c. 123, §§7 and 8 and for an order authorizing
Where a respondent has appealed from an order of civil commitment, that order should be upheld despite the respondent’s assertion that that there was insufficient evidence to prove that there was no less restrictive alternative to hospitalization. “C.S. argues that the evidence was insufficient to prove that no less restrictive alternative to hospitalization existed for