For Immediate Release
Media Contact: Lisa Hewitt
617-512-1248 │[email protected]
CPCS Decries Actions by BMC Judge Richard Sinnott as Abuse of Judicial Power
Anthony Benedetti, Chief Counsel of the Committee for Public Counsel Services (the Statewide Public Defender’s office) commented on the actions of Judge Richard Sinnott stated:
“Yesterday, Judge Richard Sinnott of the Boston Municipal Court jailed a lawyer for peacefully and civilly citing case law to demonstrate his denial of the District Attorney’s nolle prosequi was illegal. This abhorrent action is a stain on our commonwealth’s judicial system. Throwing an attorney in jail simply to silence her appropriate advocacy on behalf of her client is an abuse of power that cannot be taken lightly. This is not the behavior of a rational, impartial and moral arbiter of justice upon which our system depends. It says a lot that this defense attorney was arrested for defending the power of the prosecutor.
However, yesterday’s events go far beyond the fact that the judge was wrong in his interpretation of District Attorney Rollins’ power to decline prosecution of any case in her discretion. They strike at the heart of due process and the right to a fair trial. Attorneys must be able to argue vigorously for their client without the fear of being put in a cage by a judge who disagrees with them.”