reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 29 - Witness Fees

Section 29. The fees for attending as a witness before the general court, the supreme judicial court, the superior court, the land court, a probate court or court of insolvency, a district court, county commissioners, a trial justice, a referee, an arbitrator, the division of industrial accidents or the board of conciliation and arbitration, or on any other occasion for which no express provision is made, or allowed to persons, except the debtor, who are examined under section eighty-two of chapter two hundred and sixteen, unless fraudulent conduct is charged and proved against them, shall be six dollars a day, and ten cents a mile for travel out and home; provided, that if the witness has a usual place of business or employment in the city or town where the court trial or hearing is held, travel shall be reckoned out and to such place of business or employment, and not out and home. Each witness shall certify in writing the amount of his travel and attendance.
Any person who at the request of the attorney general or a district attorney, for the purpose of assisting him in the investigation of any matter within his jurisdiction as such attorney general or district attorney, attends the attorney general at any place, or the office of such district attorney at a courthouse, shall receive the fees provided in the preceding paragraph for a witness attending the superior court and subject to the same provisions, except that the certificate required by the last sentence of said paragraph shall be accompanied by a voucher signed by the attorney general or the district attorney that such fees are due said person for his attendance as provided in this paragraph.
Expenses incurred by witnesses summonsed on behalf of a defendant determined to be indigent, as well as expenses incurred by witnesses summonsed on behalf of the commonwealth, as such expenses are determined in accordance with this section, shall be paid by the commonwealth after such witness has certified with the court the amount of his travel and attendance.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 30 - Witness Held in Jail

Section 30. A witness who is detained in jail under section forty-nine of chapter two hundred and seventy-six because of his inability to furnish sureties shall be allowed as a witness fee such sum as the court shall order, but not less than one dollar and fifty cents for each day of his detention.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 32 - Interpreters and Nonresident Witnesses

Section 32. District courts may allow reasonable compensation to interpreters for service rendered and to witnesses from without the commonwealth in criminal proceedings before them, which shall be paid by the commonwealth in the same manner as witness fees, and shall allow interpreters ordered by them to attend such proceedings before them but not called upon for service the sum of one dollar for each day of such attendance, which shall be paid in the manner aforesaid.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 33 - Witnesses in Delinquency Cases

Section 33. All laws in relation to the payment of witness fees and to the payment of expenses of officers in criminal cases shall apply in cases arising under sections forty-two to sixty-four, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and nineteen.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 35 - Marriages

Section 35. The fee for lawfully solemnizing and certifying a marriage shall not exceed $100 if performed in the justice of the peace's home community or $150 if performed in any municipality in the commonwealth; provided, however, that no additional charge shall be made for travel in connection with such solemnization notwithstanding any law to the contrary. Nor shall any additional charge be made by a justice of the peace, for providing flowers, for providing music, for providing a photographer, for providing a location where the marriage ceremony takes place, or for providing an unofficial certificate of marriage. Additional charges are allowable for prenuptial counseling conferences, rehearsals, and other special requests by the couple whose marriage is being solemnized; provided, however, that the amount of these additional charges must be disclosed in writing to the couple whose marriage is being solemnized at least forty-eight hours prior to the rendering of these services. The total fee for lawfully solemnizing and certifying a marriage shall not exceed the fee limit fixed for solemnizing and certifying a marriage in a justice of the peace's home community where a municipal employee who is also a justice of the peace solemnizes a marriage in a municipal building at a time when said building is regularly open for business.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 36 - Certification

Section 36. The fee for copies of any official papers or articles of organization certified by the state secretary shall be determined annually by the commissioner of administration under the provision of section three B of chapter seven. The fee for the state secretary's certificate on copies or otherwise shall be determined also under the aforementioned provision.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 37 - Records or Papers; Examination

Section 37. Every person upon whose application an examination of records or papers is made by direction of the state secretary shall pay to the secretary therefor the actual expense thereof, and of copying the manuscript or record required; but any person whom the secretary considers to be entitled to exemption from said fees shall receive such service and copies for such reduced fees, or without fee, as the secretary may determine.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 38 - Registers of Deeds' Enumeration of Fees

Section 38. Except as otherwise provided, the fees of the registers of deeds to be paid when an instrument is recorded shall be as follows:
For entering and recording any paper, certifying the same on the original, and indexing it and all other duties pertaining thereto, $50; provided, however, that if the paper includes multiple references to a document or instrument intending or attempting to assign, discharge, release, partially release, subordinate or notice any other document or instrument, each reference shall be separately indexed and separately assessed an additional $50 fee;
For recording a declaration of trust, $200;
For recording a deed or conveyance, $100;
For recording a mortgage, $150;
For recording a declaration of homestead, $30;
For recording and filing a plan, $50 per sheet; and
For all copies of documents, whether copied out of books or generated electronically, $1 per page, and all coin-operated copy machines shall be $.50 per page.
Except as otherwise provided, the fees of the registers of deeds to be paid when the instrument is recorded shall be subject to a surcharge under section 8 of chapter 44B.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 40a - Child Support Collection Services; Fee

Section 40A. The probate and family court department shall impose a fee for child support collection services furnished under chapter two hundred and eight, two hundred and nine or any other chapter in which an individual may be ordered to pay support on behalf of another. The amount of the fee and the manner in which it is imposed shall be in accordance with the provisions of 42 USC Secs. 651 to 660, inclusive, of the Social Security Act.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 41 - Notaries Public; Enumeration of Fees

Section 41. The fees of notaries public shall be as follows:
For the protest of a bill of exchange, order, draft or check for non-acceptance or non-payment, or of a promissory note for non-payment, if the amount thereof is five hundred dollars or more, one dollar; if it is less than five hundred dollars, fifty cents; for recording the same, fifty cents; for noting the non-acceptance or non-payment of a bill of exchange, order, draft or check or the non-payment of a promissory note, seventy-five cents; and for each notice of the non-acceptance or non-payment of a bill, order, draft, check or note, given to a party liable for the payment thereof, twenty-five cents; but the whole cost of protest, including necessary notices and the record, if the bill, order, draft, check or note is of the amount of five hundred dollars or more, shall not exceed two dollars, and if it is less than five hundred dollars, shall not exceed one dollar and fifty cents; and the whole cost of noting, including recording and notices, shall in no case exceed one dollar and twenty-five cents.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 42 - Commissioners in Other States; Enumeration of Fees

Section 42. The fees of commissioners appointed under section four of chapter two hundred and twenty-two shall be as follows:
For administering oaths and certifying the same under their official seals, one dollar for each; for taking acknowledgments of deeds and other instruments and certifying the same under their official seals, one dollar for each; for each written page contained in any deposition or affidavit taken by them, fifty cents; for administering the oath or affirmation to each deponent, one dollar; for authenticating, sealing up and directing each deposition, one dollar; for services not hereinbefore specified, the same fees as are allowed to justices of the peace in this commonwealth for like services; but the court to which a deposition is returnable shall order further allowance therefor if it appears proper to do so.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 44 - Copies

Section 44. The department of public utilities or the department of telecommunications and cable may charge a fee to be determined annually by the commissioner of administration under the provision of section three B of chapter seven for copies of official documents and orders relating to common and contract carriers. Other public officers required by law to furnish copies of records or other papers shall receive fees for such copies at the same rate as is provided in paragraph (a) of section ten of chapter sixty-six, unless otherwise provided.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 44a - Certified Copies of Vital Records; Exemption

Section 44A. The fee for a certified copy of a birth, marriage or death record issued by the office of the commissioner of public health shall be determined annually by the commissioner of administration under the provision of section three B of chapter seven; except that any person whom the commissioner or registrar of vital records and statistics considers to be entitled to exemption from said fees shall receive such copies at reduced fee or no fee as the commissioner or registrar shall determine.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 46 - List of Fees; Manner of Posting

Section 46. Each of the officers before mentioned shall always keep posted in a conspicuous and convenient place in his office a printed or written list of the fees prescribed in this chapter so far as they relate to him.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 46a - Copies of Records Concerning Veterans; Furnishings Without Charge

Section 46A. No fee for a copy of any record relating to the birth, death, marriage, divorce, adoption or change of name of any veteran, as defined in clause Forty-third of section seven of chapter four, or relating to any person a copy of whose like record is necessary to assist in proving a claim against the United States or the commonwealth by the veteran or by his or her spouse, widow, widower, children, dependents or legal representatives, shall be demanded or received by any officer of the commonwealth, or of any county, city or town thereof, who has charge of such records, from the veteran or from his or her spouse, widow, widower, children, dependents or legal representatives; provided, that such copy is for use in relation to such a claim against the United States or the commonwealth.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 47 - Criminal Cases; Return of Expense Under Oath

Section 47. No fees shall be allowed upon the return of an officer upon a precept in a criminal case, in which expenses are charged, unless every item of expense incurred and the name of the person to whom each amount was paid is set forth under oath in the return; and no item of expense which may be considered unreasonable shall be allowed by the court without satisfactory proof that the expense was necessarily incurred and the amount reasonable. But the superior court, with the written approval of the district attorney, or a district court or a trial justice, may, upon the petition of an officer named in sections fifty and fifty-one, allow extra compensation for any meritorious service for which the fees allowed by law are manifestly inadequate. No allowance shall be made for aid in the service of a mittimus, unless first authorized in writing by the court which issues it. Justices, clerks and assistant clerks of courts shall administer the oath to officers upon their returns, at their request; and no fee shall be allowed to an officer for such oath, and no justice of the peace shall be entitled to a fee for administering such oath.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 48 - Criminal Cases; Service of Several Processes on Single Defendant; Allowance of Fees

Section 48. If more than one criminal process is served upon the same defendant on the same day, or if two or more prisoners are conveyed at one time by the same officer, by virtue of a mittimus, habeas corpus or state prison warrant, either on one process or on several processes, one traveling fee and one service only shall be allowed in conveying such additional prisoner or prisoners, in addition to the actual reasonable expense necessarily incurred.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 49 - Mittimus; Fees for Issuance or Service; Limitations

Section 49. No fee shall be allowed to a trial justice for issuing more than one mittimus, nor to an officer for the service of more than one mittimus, in cases in which two or more persons are jointly convicted and sentenced to the same place of imprisonment; and, if the superior court is of opinion that a trial justice has improvidently issued two or more warrants against the same defendants for similar offences, no fees shall be allowed to the justice upon any of said warrants.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 50 - Salaried Officers; Limitation on Acceptance of Fees; Penalty

Section 50. No officer in attendance on any court, sheriff, deputy sheriff, jailer, constable, city marshal or other police officer who receives a salary or an allowance by the day or hour from the commonwealth or from a county, city or town shall, except as otherwise hereinafter provided, be paid any fee or extra compensation for official services performed by him in any criminal case; or for aid rendered to another officer; or for testifying as a witness in a criminal case during the time for which he receives such salary or allowance; or for services or as a witness at an autopsy or inquest; or in proceedings for commitment of mentally ill persons; but his expenses, necessarily and actually, incurred, and actually disbursed by him in a criminal case shall be paid by the commonwealth. Whoever receives extra compensation or a witness fee in violation of this section shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 53 - Attendance of Police Officers on Vacation, Furlough or Day Off as Witnesses; Criminal or Juvenile Cases

Section 53. Any police officer on duty at night, on vacation, furlough or on a day off, who attends as a witness in a criminal case pending in a district court, including the municipal court of the city of Boston, or in a juvenile court, including Boston juvenile court, shall be allowed a witness fee in the amount of three dollars for each day's attendance, including his first attendance as arresting officer in the case. Any police officer on duty at night, vacation, furlough or on a day off, who attends as a witness in a criminal case pending in a district court, including the municipal court of the city of Boston, or in a juvenile court, including Boston juvenile court, and who by reason of a continuance or postponement thereof, is required to again attend, shall be paid the amount of three dollars for each day of such further attendance. Any police officer on duty at night, vacation, furlough or on a day off, who attends the superior court as a witness for the commonwealth shall be paid a witness fee in the amount of three dollars for each day's attendance. A police officer who is a witness for the commonwealth, and who under the direction of the district attorney aids in securing the attendance of other witnesses, may receive, instead of his expenses, witness fees in the amount of three dollars for one day's attendance. Police officers shall serve subpoenas upon witnesses when requested by the district attorney, and their returns of service shall have the same force and effect as the return of a deputy sheriff or constable.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 53a - Police Officers as Witnesses Outside Place of Residence; Criminal, Juvenile or Superior Courts

Section 53A. Any police officer named in section fifty and section fifty-three who attends as a witness at a place other than his residence in a criminal case pending in a district court, including the municipal court of the city of Boston, or in a juvenile court, or in the superior court shall be paid eight cents a mile for travel out and home for each day's attendance, except that travel allowance shall not be allowed when such travel is made in municipally-owned vehicles. Each officer shall certify in writing the amount of his travel and attendance. Such payments shall be in addition to his other expenses necessarily and actually incurred as provided for in section fifty and shall be paid in the same manner as such expenses are required to be paid by section fifty.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 53b - Witness Fees of Uniformed Members of Department of State Police

Section 53B. Any uniformed member of the department of state police, appointed under section ten of chapter twenty-two C, on duty at night, or on vacation or furlough, or on a day off, who attends as a witness in a civil or criminal suit pending in a district court or in a juvenile court or in the superior court shall be allowed a witness fee in the amount of three dollars for each day's attendance including his first day's attendance as arresting officer. Any such officer who attends court held at a place other than his residence in a criminal case pending in any court of the commonwealth shall be reimbursed in accordance with the mileage rate then in effect for state employees as set by the commissioner of administration for travel out and home for each day's attendance, except that travel allowance shall not be allowed when such travel is made in state-owned vehicles. Each officer shall certify in writing under the penalties of perjury the amount of his travel and attendance. Such payments shall be in addition to his other expenses necessarily and actually incurred as provided for in section fifty and shall be paid in the same manner.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 53c - Compensatory Time Off to Police Officers

Section 53C. Any police officer, including an officer of the department of state police appointed under section ten of chapter twenty-two C, on duty at night or on vacation, furlough or on a day off, who attends as a witness for the commonwealth in a criminal case pending in a district court, including the municipal court of the city of Boston, or any juvenile court, or the superior court, may, in lieu of the witness fee to which he would otherwise be entitled under section fifty-three or section fifty-three B, as the case may be, be granted such compensatory time off as shall be equal to the time during which he was in attendance at such court, but in no event shall less than three hours compensatory time off be granted him or, if such additional time off cannot be given because of personnel shortage or other cause, he shall, in lieu of said witness fee, be entitled to additional pay for the time during which he was in attendance at such court, but in no event shall he receive less than three hours additional pay.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 56 - Witness Fees of Public Officers; Disallowance

Section 56. Except as otherwise provided, an officer of the commonwealth whose salary is fixed by law, or any employee of the commonwealth receiving regular compensation therefrom shall not be entitled to a witness fee before any court in a cause in which the commonwealth is a party. An officer whose compensation is derived solely from fees shall not be entitled to receive more than one fee as a witness for a day's attendance on court under one or more summonses in behalf of the commonwealth, and the said fee shall be apportioned by the clerk among the cases in which he is summoned. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the payment of a witness fee to any member of the police department of said commission if he is on duty at the time of his attendance on court as a witness.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 57 - Public Officers as Witnesses; Allowance of Expenses

Section 57. If it appears on oath that a salaried officer of the commonwealth has attended court as a witness in behalf of the commonwealth, at a place other than his residence, and that his necessary expenses have been increased by such attendance, the court may allow such increased necessary expenses, not exceeding one dollar and fifty cents a day in all, for such actual and necessary attendance.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 58 - Penalty

Section 58. Whoever receives a witness fee or allowance for increased necessary expenses in violation of any provision of the three preceding sections shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars. Every clerk of a court shall report forthwith to the district attorney for his county every violation of said sections which comes to his knowledge, and said district attorneys shall institute prosecutions therefor.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 59 - Witness in Multiple Criminal Cases; Apportionment of Fees

Section 59. If witnesses are in attendance in two or more criminal cases pending at the same time before the same court, they shall not be allowed full travel and attendance in each case, but the justice or clerk of the court may reduce and apportion the same, allowing at least one travel and attendance.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 60 - Witnesses' Fees; Refusal in Certain Cases

Section 60. If, on the trial of a criminal case, it appears that a witness has induced the defendant to commit the crime with which he is charged with intent to appear as a witness against him, the court or magistrate may in his discretion refuse to allow him his fees.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 61 - Witness Certificates; Purchase of Orders, etc., by Officers Prohibited

Section 61. A sheriff, deputy sheriff or other officer who takes the certificates of witnesses in criminal cases shall not purchase or discount or have any interest in orders drawn or demands upon the treasury by such witnesses.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 62 - False Certificates of Witnesses; Penalty

Section 62. Whoever, with intent to defraud, signs or procures to be signed a certificate of attendance or travel as a witness before a court, or reference founded upon a rule of court, in any case in which the witness did not so attend, or for a greater number of days than he actually attended, or for a greater number of miles than he actually traveled, upon which certificate the attendance or travel so claimed is allowed as a part of the expenses of prosecution, shall forfeit thirty dollars for each offence, to be recovered on complaint or indictment to the use of the commonwealth or by action of tort to the use of any person against whom such excessive costs were taxed, with four times the whole amount taxed for attendance or travel on such false certificate, and double costs in the action of tort. Such complaint, indictment or action shall be commenced within two years after the offence is committed.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title VI - Costs and Fees › Chapter 262 - Fees of Certain Officers › Section 63 - Delinquent Magistrate; Refusal of Fees

Section 63. If the administration of justice or the progress of business in criminal proceedings is delayed, obstructed or prevented by the negligence of a magistrate in certifying and returning recognizances, records or other official papers which it is his duty to transmit to a higher court, or in omitting the formalities required by law, the district attorney, with the approval of the court, may refuse to allow the fees, either in whole or in part, to which such magistrate would otherwise be entitled.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 1 - Nature of Crime; Right to Be Informed; Penalty

Section 1. Whoever is arrested by virtue of process, or whoever is taken into custody by an officer, has a right to know from the officer who arrests or claims to detain him the true ground on which the arrest is made; and an officer who refuses to answer a question relative to the reason for such arrest, or answers such question untruly, or assigns to the person arrested an untrue reason for the arrest, or neglects upon request to exhibit to the person arrested, or to any other person acting in his behalf, the precept by virtue of which such arrest has been made, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than one year.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 1a - Fingerprinting and Photographing; Contents of Record; Audits

Section 1A. Whoever is arrested by virtue of process or is taken into custody by an officer and is charged with the commission of a felony shall be fingerprinted according to the system of the department of state police and photographed. The fingerprints and photographs shall be immediately forwarded to the department of state police to allow a biometric positive identification. The fingerprint record shall be suitable for comparison and shall include an offense-based tracking number, completed description of the offenses charged and other descriptors as required. The executive office of public safety and security may audit police departments for compliance with this section.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 2 - Arrest on False Pretense; Penalty

Section 2. An officer who arrests or takes into or detains in custody a person, pretending to have a process if he has none, or pretending to have a different process from that which he has, shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than one year.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 3 - False Imprisonment; Actions Against Officers

Section 3. No action, except for use of excessive force, shall lie against any officer other than the arresting officer, by reason of the fact that, in good faith and in the performance of his duties, he participates in the arrest or imprisonment of any person believed to be guilty of a crime unless it can be shown that such other officer in the performance of his duties took an active part in the arrest or imprisonment as aforesaid, either by ordering or directing that said arrest or imprisonment take place or be made, or by actually initiating the making and carrying out of said arrest and imprisonment. No action, except for use of excessive force, shall lie against any bystander assisting an officer in making an arrest, at the request of the officer.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 4 - Prosecution of Crimes; Manner

Section 4. No person shall be held to answer in any court for an alleged crime, except upon an indictment by a grand jury or upon a complaint before a district court, the housing court of the city of Boston, the western division of the housing court department, the northeastern division of the housing court department, the southeastern division of the housing court department, the housing court of the county of Worcester or in proceedings before a court-martial.
A defendant charged with an offense punishable by imprisonment in state prison shall have the right to be proceeded against by indictment except when the offense charged is within the concurrent jurisdiction of the district and superior courts and the district court retains jurisdiction.
No juvenile shall be sentenced to any punishment as is provided by law for the offense by a juvenile court or a juvenile session of a district court, as the case may be, unless he has been proceeded against by indictment or has waived indictment pursuant to section four A of chapter two hundred and sixty-three, except as otherwise provided in section seventy-two A of chapter one hundred and nineteen. The clerk of the superior court in which an indictment of such juvenile is returned shall promptly remit the indictment to the clerk of the juvenile court or the juvenile session of the district court, as the case may be, in which such indictment is to be tried.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 4a - Waiver of Indictment; Procedure

Section 4A. A defendant charged in the district court with an offense as to which he has the right to be proceeded against by indictment shall have the right, except when the offense charged is a capital crime, to waive that right, whereupon the court shall have as full jurisdiction of the complaint as if an indictment had been found. If a defendant is so charged and requests a probable cause hearing in district court, that request shall constitute a waiver of the right to be proceeded against by indictment and the prosecution may proceed upon the complaint. If a defendant waives the right to be proceeded against by indictment, a probable cause hearing shall be held in the district court unless the defendant waives the probable cause hearing or unless the prosecutor elects to proceed by indictment pursuant to the Massachusetts Rules of Criminal Procedure.
If the district attorney desires to charge a defendant who waives indictment hereunder with an additional non-capital crime which is not charged in the complaint upon which the prosecution is proceeding and as to which there is the right to be proceeded against by indictment, the district attorney may prepare an additional complaint charging such additional crime and serve that complaint upon the defendant so as to give the defendant an opportunity to waive indictment upon such additional charge.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 5 - Counsel; Right of Accused

Section 5. A person accused of crime shall at his trial be allowed to be heard by counsel, to defend himself, to produce witnesses and proofs in his favor and to meet the witnesses produced against him face to face.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 5a - Driving While Intoxicated; Right to Medical Examination; Notice

Section 5A. A person held in custody at a police station or other place of detention, charged with operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor, shall have the right, at his request and at his expense, to be examined immediately by a physician selected by him. The police official in charge of such station or place of detention, or his designee, shall inform him of such right immediately upon being booked, and shall afford him a reasonable opportunity to exercise it. Such person shall, immediately upon being booked, be given a copy of this section unless such a copy is posted in the police station or other place of detention in a conspicuous place to which such person has access.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 6 - Conviction; Manner; Waiver of Jury Trial

Section 6. A person indicted for a crime shall not be convicted thereof except by confessing his guilt in open court, by admitting the truth of the charge against him by his plea or demurrer or by the verdict of a jury accepted and recorded by the court or, in any criminal case other than a capital case, by the judgment of the court. Any defendant in a criminal case other than a capital case, whether begun by indictment or upon complaint, may, if he shall so elect, when called upon to plead, or later and before a jury has been impanelled to try him upon such indictment or complaint, waive his right to trial by jury by signing a written waiver thereof and filing the same with the clerk of the court. If the court consents to the waiver, he shall be tried by the court instead of by a jury, but not, however, unless all the defendants, if there are two or more charged with related offenses, whether prosecuted under the same or different indictments or complaints shall have exercised such election before a jury has been impanelled to try any of the defendants; and in every such case the court shall have jurisdiction to hear and try such cause and render judgment and sentence thereon. Except where there is more than one defendant involved as aforesaid, consent to said waiver shall not be denied in the district court or the Boston municipal court if the waiver is filed before the case is transferred for jury trial to the appropriate jury session, as provided in section twenty-seven A of chapter two hundred and eighteen.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 7 - Acquittal; Effect on Subsequent Charges

Section 7. A person shall not be held to answer on a second indictment or complaint for a crime of which he has been acquitted upon the facts and merits; but he may plead such acquittal in bar of any subsequent prosecution for the same crime, notwithstanding any defect in the form or substance of the indictment or complaint on which he was acquitted.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 8 - Acquittal on Defective Pleadings; Subsequent Indictment

Section 8. If a person has been acquitted by reason of a variance between the indictment or complaint and the proof, or by reason of a defect of form or substance in the indictment or complaint, he may be again arraigned, tried and convicted for the same crime on a new indictment or complaint, notwithstanding such former acquittal.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263 - Rights of Persons Accused of Crime › Section 8a - Acquittal on Merits in District Court or Housing Courts of City of Boston and County of Worcester; Effect

Section 8A. A person shall not be held to answer in a district court or the housing court of the city of Boston, the western division of the housing court department, the northeastern division of the housing court department, the southeastern division of the housing court department, or the housing court of the county of Worcester to a second complaint for an offense for which he has already been tried upon the merits in a district court or in the housing court of the city of Boston, the housing court of the county of Hampden, the northeastern division of the housing court department, the southeastern division of the housing court department, or the housing court of the county of Worcester.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263a - Witness Protection in Criminal Matters › Section 1 - Definitions

Section 1. For the purposes of this chapter, the following words shall have the following meanings:—
''Board'', the witness protection board established in section 2.
''Prosecuting officer'', the attorney general or a district attorney from each county.
''Critical witness'', any person who is participating, has participated, or is reasonably expected to participate in a criminal investigation, motion hearing, trial, show cause hearing, or other criminal proceeding, or a proceeding involving an alleged violation of conditions of probation or parole, or the commitment of a sexually dangerous person pursuant to chapter 123A; or who has received a subpoena requiring such participation; who is, or was, in the judgment of the prosecuting officer, a necessary witness at one or more of the aforementioned types of proceedings, and who is or may be endangered by such person's participation in the aforementioned proceeding; or such person's relatives, guardians, friends or associates, who are or may be endangered by such person's participation in the aforementioned proceeding.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263a - Witness Protection in Criminal Matters › Section 2 - Witness Protection Board; Composition; Powers and Duties

Section 2. There is hereby established a witness protection board within the executive office of public safety consisting of the secretary of public safety, the attorney general, the auditor, a chief of police appointed by the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association, and a district attorney appointed by the Massachusetts District Attorney's Association, or any member's respective designees. The board shall oversee the commonwealth's witness protection program and coordinate the efforts of state, county and law enforcement agencies to protect the health, safety and welfare of witnesses including, but not limited to, the administration and approval of funding for witness protection services. The board shall promulgate rules and regulations for the administration of the commonwealth's witness protection program and establish procedures to maximize federal funds for witness protection services.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263a - Witness Protection in Criminal Matters › Section 3 - Petition Requesting Witness Protection Services

Section 3. In any criminal investigation or proceeding, the prosecuting officer with jurisdiction over the investigation or proceeding may file a petition with the board requesting witness protection services for a critical witness if the prosecuting officer certifies that such witness's participation in the investigation or proceeding places the witness at risk of harm including, but not limited to, intimidation or retaliatory violence. The petition shall include a proposed plan for protective services which shall include, but not be limited to, projected costs, method of protection and likely duration of services. The board shall review the petition as soon as possible and if, by a vote of 3 or more board members, finds that the petition and plan comply with the rules and regulations established by the board, the board shall assist the prosecuting officer to coordinate the efforts of state, county and local agencies to secure witness protection services. The board shall, subject to appropriation, reimburse the prosecuting officer for any witness protection related costs that comply with the regulations and guidelines established by the board.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263a - Witness Protection in Criminal Matters › Section 4 - Temporary Action Based on Exigent Circumstances Without Prior Approval by Board

Section 4. If a prosecuting officer determines that exigent circumstances exist regarding an imminent threat to the safety of a critical witness, he may take any appropriate temporary action he determines is necessary to protect the safety of the witness without prior approval of the board. The prosecuting officer shall inform the board of the action taken and the related costs within 48 hours. Any such costs, which would otherwise be in compliance with the rules and regulations established by the board pursuant to section 2, may be reimbursed to the prosecuting officer.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263a - Witness Protection in Criminal Matters › Section 5 - Protective Services Provided to Critical Witnesses; Notice to Defense Counsel

Section 5. Protective services provided to a critical witness may include, but not be limited to:—
(a) any necessary armed protection or escort, marked or unmarked surveillance or periodic visits or contact by law enforcement officials prior, during or subsequent to a criminal proceeding;
(b) physical relocation to an alternate shelter, housing or residence;
(c) reasonable housing expenses;
(d) transportation or storage of personal possessions;
(e) basic living expenses; and
(f) petition for a protective order on any individual identified as a threat to a critical witness.
Any protective services provided to a critical witness shall be made known to defense counsel pursuant to Rule 14 of the Massachusetts Rules of Criminal Procedure.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263a - Witness Protection in Criminal Matters › Section 7 - Refusal of Protective Services; Revocation of Services Upon Violation of Memorandum of Understanding

Section 7. If a witness, after being offered protective services under this chapter, at any time declines to receive such services, the prosecuting officer shall request that the witness make such refusal in writing, or, if the witness refuses to document such refusal of services in writing, the prosecuting officer shall document the refusal and inform the witness protection board forthwith that the witness has declined protective services. If a witness violates the terms of the memorandum of understanding set forth in section 6 or any other condition of receiving witness protection services under this chapter, the prosecuting officer may revoke and terminate all protective services, and shall so advise the witness in writing. The prosecuting officer shall notify the board forthwith of such revocation and grounds therefore.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part IV - Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases › Title I - Crimes and Punishments › Chapter 263a - Witness Protection in Criminal Matters › Section 8 - Relocation of Critical Witness Within Public Housing System

Section 8. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, or any regulation, rule or ordinance, if a petition and plan for witness protection, approved by the board, requires relocation of a critical witness within the public housing system, such relocation shall be effectuated without regard to any impediment including, but not limited to, any existing waiting list.