------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blue Ribbon Commission Report
"The vast majority of criminal justice attorneys
are supplementing their income through second jobs, and many of
those jobs are in the hospitality industry. They are working as
bartenders, as waiters, and waitresses. They are not living an
extravagant lifestyle."
MBA Chief Legal Counsel
and Chief Operating Officer Martin W. Healy, Boston Globe, May 8
Healy spoke to the Globe about the alarmingly low
salaries paid to attorneys who work in the state's criminal justice
system. The low salaries are the subject of a new report issued by the MBA's Blue Ribbon
Commission on Criminal Justice Attorney Compensation. "There is
definitely a public safety aspect to all of it,'' said Healy. "Some
of the individuals are beating charges they ought not to be, and
then get back out on the street." The report, which found that
assistant district attorneys in the state make less than the
courtroom custodian, got national recognition in the Wall Street Journal Law Blog and the Above the Law blog.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tsarnaev Friends in Federal
Court
"Generally speaking these sorts
of motions do not go well for the defendant when they kind of knock
out the evidence on some kind of a legal technicality unless it's
really egregious."
MBA Past Criminal Justice
Section Chair Peter Elikann, FOX25, May 14
Elikann spoke to FOX25 News about three friends of Boston
Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev who appeared in U.S.
District Court this week for a pretrial hearing. Defense attorneys
for UMass Dartmouth students Azamat Tazhayakov, Dias Kadyrbayev and
Robel Phillipos are questioning the validity of FBI interrogations
that took place after the bombings.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Judicial Retirements
"I look at it as an infusion of new blood into a
staid justice system. I think it's a positive change for the whole
system."
MBA Chief Legal Counsel
and Chief Operating Officer Martin W. Healy, Boston Globe, May 12
Healy spoke to the Globe about the high number of
judicial retirements that are expected to occur across the state
when a pay increase takes effect in July. Noting the length of time
some judges have served, Healy acknowledged that "In many
instances, some got appointed to the bench very young and they've
been on for 30 or 40 years." The story was also picked up by the
Associated Press and ran in several outlets.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------