The Massachusetts Appeals Court today upheld a man's conviction for dealing drugs in Cambridge even though his lawyer didn't get the chance to cross-examine the expert who signed a certificate on what sort of pills he was caught with.
The court ruled the fact that the pills were stamped with a brand name and were in a Walgreens prescription bottle with David Greco's name on it, that he was arrested in front of the Walgreens the prescription was from and that the guy he sold the pills to had the same pills on him was enough proof to warrant a conviction.
In recent months, the court has thrown out a number of drug and gun convictions because of the cross-examination issue - based on a Boston case that went to the Supreme Court, which ruled defendants have a Sixth Amendment right to challenge experts in court. But the appeals court has
upheld convictions where it felt this certification was not a key part of the prosecution's case.
In Greco's case, the court said there was more than enough circumstantial evidence to convict him on charges of distribution of a Class E drug and distribution of a Class E drug in a school zone. However, the court did dismiss a charge of distribution as a repeat offender because the issue only came up during his sentencing, not his trial.
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