Effective Date: | 07/01/1986 |
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Updates: | Amended May 26, 1986, effective July 1, 1986. |
(Applicable to District Court and Superior Court)
Effective Date: | 07/01/1986 |
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Updates: | Amended May 26, 1986, effective July 1, 1986. |
(Applicable to District Court and Superior Court)
These rules are intended to provide for the just determination of every criminal proceeding. They shall be construed to secure simplicity in procedure, fairness in administration, and the elimination of expense and delay.
Words or phrases importing the singular number may extend and be applied to several persons or things, words importing the plural number may include the singular, and words importing the masculine gender may include the feminine and neuter.
When in these rules reference is made to a subdivision of a rule, that reference is to that subdivision and to any subdivisions thereof.
In construing these rules the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings unless a contrary intent clearly appears from the context in which they are used:
"Indigent" means any defendant who is unable to procure counsel with his funds as defined in Supreme Judicial Court Rule 3:10.
"Indigent but able to contribute" means any defendant who is unable to procure counsel with his funds but is able to contribute funds for the cost of counsel as defined in Supreme Judicial Court Rule 3:10.
"Capital Crime" means a charge of murder in the first degree.
"Commonwealth" includes the prosecuting office or agency and all officers or agents responsible thereto.
"Court" includes a judge, special magistrate, or clerk.
"District Attorney" or "Attorney General" include assistant district attorneys or assistant attorneys general and other attorneys specially appointed to aid in the prosecution of a case.
"District Court" includes all divisions of the District Court Department of the Trial Court, the Boston Municipal Court Department of the Trial Court, and the Juvenile Court Department of the Trial Court, or sessions thereof for holding court.
"Interested Person" includes the adverse party, a co-defendant, and a witness who is to be deposed.
"Judge" includes a judge of a court or one properly assigned to a court or a special magistrate when in the performance of those duties imposed and authorized by these rules.
"Juvenile Court" means a division of the Juvenile Court Department of the Trial Court, or a session thereof for holding court.
"Mailing" means the use of regular mail and shall not require registered or certified mail.
"Prosecuting Attorney" means the attorney general or assistant attorneys general, district attorney, assistant district attorneys, special assistant district attorneys, or legal assistants to the district attorney, or other attorneys specially appointed to aid in the prosecution of a case.
"Prosecutor" means any prosecuting attorney or prosecuting officer, and shall include a city solicitor, a police prosecutor, or a law student approved for practice pursuant to and acting as authorized by the rules of the Supreme Judicial Court.
"Related Offense" means one of two or more offenses which are based on the same criminal conduct or episode or arise out of a course of criminal conduct or series of criminal episodes connected together or constituting parts of a single scheme or plan.
"Return Day" means the day upon which a defendant is ordered by summons to first appear or, if under arrest, does first appear before a court to answer to the charges against him, whichever is earlier.
"Special Magistrate" means any person who is appointed pursuant to, and empowered to administer those functions authorized by, rule 47 of these rules.
"Summons" means
"Superior Court" means the Superior Court Department of the Trial Court, or a session thereof for holding court.
Rule 2 is perhaps the most significant of the rules in advancing the trend toward a high degree of procedural fairness in the administration of criminal justice. This is so because the rule not only permits but requires the rules to be construed and applied in a manner which provides for fairness in their administration to the end that a just determination in every criminal proceeding shall be achieved. The rules must be approached with sympathy for this purpose; they must be interpreted with common sense.
The rules were not intended to be administered inflexibly without regard for the circumstances of the particular case. Where a literal interpretation of a rule and its application in a specific situation would lead to unnecessary expense or delay, would unduly complicate the proceedings, or would operate unfairly or produce an unjust result, that interpretation is to yield to the principle enunciated in Rule 2(a).
This is not to imply that the rules were conceived as merely guidelines or suggested procedures to which the courts and counsel need adhere only as will further their particular interests. They have the force and effect of law.
The appellate courts have made it increasingly clear that abuse of power by the prosecution or by trial judges is not to be tolerated. See eg., S.J.C. Rule 3:22A, Disciplinary Rules Applicable to Practice as a Prosecutor or as a Defense Lawyer, PF 1-14 (Feb. 14, 1979); Commonwealth v. St. Pierre, 377 Mass. 650 (1979); Commonwealth v. Soares, 377 Mass. 461 (1979); Commonwealth v. Ellison, 376 Mass. 1 (1978); Commonwealth v. Earltop, 372 Mass. 199 (1977) (Hennessey, C.J., concurring); Commonwealth v. Redmond, 370 Mass. 591 (1976); Commonwealth v. Sneed, 376 Mass. 867 (1978). It is equally apparent that a high standard of conduct is demanded of defense counsel, See S.J.C. Rule 3:22A, supra, DF 1-15. A disregard for these rules of court or a failure to adhere to their provisions are abuses of the system which can be expected to produce problems in the administration of justice and unfairness to the Commonwealth, defendants, and the public, and which, therefore, should not be tolerated by either the trial or appellate courts.
The language of the first paragraph is drawn virtually without change from Fed.R.Crim.P. 2. These rules are intended to minimize complicated proceedings and needless expense and delay and are to be construed so as to achieve that goal.
The principle of construction stated in subdivision (a)(1) is taken from G.L. c. 4, § 6, cl. fourth, which relates to the construction of the General Laws.
Subdivision (a)(2) is designed to avoid any confusion in reading references to subdivisions. Included in a reference to a subdivision are all paragraphs, subparagraphs, and clauses of that subdivision.
These definitions are to be used in construing these rules unless a contrary interpretation is clearly demanded by the context within which the term is used. See G.L. c. 4, § 7, c. 3, § 63.
Updates: | Amended May 26, 1986, effective July 1, 1986. |
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