Commonwealth v. Nova

The defendant was convicted by a Superior Court jury of trafficking in cocaine in an amount in excess of twenty-eight grams but less than one hundred grams, G. L. c. 94C, § 32E(¿>)(2). On appeal, the defendant alleges that (1) his pretrial motion to suppress was improperly denied and (2) the trial judge erred in failing to charge the jury, sua sponte, on the issue of consciousness of guilt. We agree that the motion to suppress was improperly denied, and reverse the defendant’s conviction.

1. Facts. At the start of a trial in an unrelated matter, the defendant fled court. The trial judge…