What is a motion to suppress in criminal procedure?
A motion to suppress is a request made by a defendant in a criminal trial to prevent specific evidence from being presented in court. In Massachusetts, a motion to suppress is governed by Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 278, §18, which states that any person who has been charged with a criminal offense and has “paper or electronic evidence” against them may make a motion to suppress. This motion must be made before trial and is done to prevent unreliable or illegally obtained evidence from being used in the trial and swaying the jury’s decision. When a motion to suppress is made, the judge considers the request and evidence presented by the defendant and decides whether the evidence will be allowed in the trial or be suppressed. If the judge rules that the evidence should be suppressed, it is excluded from the trial and the jury is not allowed to consider it when reaching a verdict. This is an important right of the defendant and provides them with a chance to prevent the jury from being subjected to unreliable or illegally obtained evidence. The motion to suppress is an important tool in criminal procedure and can be used to protect the rights of the defendant. It is worth noting that the motion to suppress must be made before trial and if it is done so after the trial has already started, it could be considered waived and rejected by the court. Therefore, it is important to understand when and how to make a motion to suppress in order to preserve the defendant’s rights.
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