Commonwealth v. Anderson
461 Mass. 616
| Mass. | 2012Background
- Two masked robbers entered a family market in Dorchester on June 19, 2008; one displayed a revolver and demanded money, the clerk complied with cash, change, and cigarettes taken.
- On October 19, 2009, Anderson was convicted of armed robbery, assault with a dangerous weapon, multiple firearm offenses, and related counts.
- The Commonwealth later argued Anderson was an armed career criminal (ACC) under G. L. c. 269, § 10G (c), based on three prior qualifying offenses.
- A youthful-offender carjacking adjudication was used to satisfy the ACC predicate requirement, prompting a challenge to its use as a “violent crime”/conviction.
- The court held: suppression not error; the youthful-offender adjudication cannot serve as a predicate under § 10G (c); ammunition possession conviction must be vacated as duplicative; ACC designation vacated and remanded for resentencing.
- The case is remanded for resentencing under § 10G (b) and for comprehensive reconsideration of related sentences.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the vehicle stop was supported by reasonable suspicion. | Anderson | Commonwealth | Yes; stop supported by reasonable suspicion and passable corroboration. |
| Whether the juvenile car-jacking adjudication qualifies as a violent crime for § 10G (c). | Commonwealth | Anderson | No; not a conviction of a violent crime when the act did not involve deadly weapon use. |
| Whether the youthful-offender adjudication could be used as a predicate without weapon involvement. | Commonwealth | Anderson | Vacated; § 10G (c) invalid as to this adjudication; resentencing under § 10G (b). |
| Whether the ammunition conviction is duplicative of the firearm offense. | Commonwealth | Anderson | Vacate unlawful possession of ammunition; remaining convictions upheld. |
Key Cases Cited
- Commonwealth v. Alvarado, 423 Mass. 266 (Mass. 1996) (need for reliable information to justify stops; basis of knowledge and veracity tests)
- Commonwealth v. Lopes, 455 Mass. 147 (Mass. 2009) (distribution of information’s reliability for reasonable suspicion)
- Commonwealth v. Mubdi, 456 Mass. 385 (Mass. 2010) (anonymous tips require corroboration for reliability)
- Commonwealth v. Depina, 456 Mass. 238 (Mass. 2010) (excited utterance-like reliability for anonymous tips)
- Florida v. J.L., 529 U.S. 266 (U.S. 2000) (anonymous tip reliability standards; corroboration required)
- Commonwealth v. Costa, 448 Mass. 510 (Mass. 2007) (anonymous tip reliability under veracity and basis of knowledge tests)
- Commonwealth v. Barros, 425 Mass. 572 (Mass. 1997) (threshold-inquiry detention and reasonable stop)
- Commonwealth v. Thibeau, 384 Mass. 762 (Mass. 1981) (limits on officer suspicion before stop)
- Commonwealth v. Vick, 454 Mass. 418 (Mass. 2009) (elements-based approach to duplicative convictions; conduct-based exceptions limited)
- Commonwealth v. Santos, 440 Mass. 281 (Mass. 2003) (earlier limitation on duplicative conviction reasoning reversed)
- Commonwealth v. Connor C., 432 Mass. 635 (Mass. 2000) (juvenile adjudications and the non-criminal nature of delinquency proceedings)
- Commonwealth v. Foreman, 63 Mass. App. Ct. 801 (Mass. App. Ct. 2005) (treatment of juvenile adjudications as convictions for § 10G purposes)
- Commonwealth v. Furr, 58 Mass. App. Ct. 155 (Mass. App. Ct. 2003) (definition of violent crime for ACC sentencing)