The Melendez-Diaz confrontation defense in Massachusetts drug cases is being narrowed by the Massachusetts courts as the Appeals Court has ruled that a police officer can testify that a substance is an illegal narcotic. This avoids the requirement of having a chemist appear in court to testify that a particular substance is an illegal drug, such as cocaine, marijuana or heroin. In light of recent cases, Massachusetts criminal defense attorney will have to be particularly vigorous in objecting to unqualified expert opinion by officers testifying that a substance is an illegal narcotic based on unscientific field testing.
In the case of Commonwealth v. Harris, decided by the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the court held a police officer's unchallenged identification of a substance as cocaine is sufficient to prove it is an illegal narcotic. Further, the court found that the admission of the defendant provided additional evidence proving that the substance was cocaine. Additionally, the case of Commonwealth v. Connelly, 454 Mass. 808 (2009) from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that police officers can field test narcotics and testify that they are illegal narcotics without the need for the chemist to appear. In Connelly, the court relied on this field testing of the officers to find that the admission of the drug certificate was harmless error.
Attorney DelSignore is a Massachusetts criminal defense lawyer, experienced with conducting motion hearings to suppress evidence, defending criminal cases before a jury and negotiating a plea disposition with prosecutors. Attorney DelSignore will answer your questions and concerns at a free consultation. Call now.
