Section 20C. In any investigation or proceeding before a grand jury, or in a criminal proceeding in the supreme judicial court, appeals court or superior court involving any offense listed in section 20D, a witness shall not be excused from testifying or from producing books, papers or other evidence on the ground that the testimony or evidence required of him may tend to incriminate him or subject him to a penalty or forfeiture, if he has been granted immunity with respect to the transactions, matters or things concerning which he is compelled, after having claimed his privilege against self-incrimination, to testify or produce evidence by a justice of the supreme judicial court, appeals court or superior court, as provided in section 20E.
Notes of Decisions
Commonwealth v. Vacher, 14 N.E.3d 264 (Mass. 2014).
· cites it 2× “2 On appeal, the defendant asks us to recognize for the first time the concept of “target standing,” and to declare the witness immunity statute, G. L. c. 233, § 20C, unconstitutional. He argues that, in litigating his own motions to suppress, he should have been afforded target…”
Commonwealth v. Doherty, 476 N.E.2d 169 (Mass. 1985).
· cites it 2× “G.L.c. 233, §§ 20C & 20E. A witness who testified at trial may be granted immunity only if he has previously been granted immunity with respect to his testifying or producing evidence before a grand jury.”
Commonwealth v. Toney, 433 N.E.2d 425 (Mass. 1982).
“Under the statute, immunity may be granted to a witness appearing before the grand jury by a Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court at the request of either the Attorney General or a district attorney.”
Commonwealth v. Curtis, 448 N.E.2d 345 (Mass. 1983).
· cites it 2× “G. L. c. 233, §§ 20C and 201. The statutory scheme provides no mechanism for a judge of the Superior Court to order the prosecutor to seek a grant of immunity.”
Carney v. City of Springfield, 532 N.E.2d 631 (Mass. 1988).
“See G. L. c. 233, §§ 20C - 20I (1986 ed.). We have previously held, however, that where a defendant relies on the promise made by an assistant district attorney, the court will enforce the promise because the sovereign must adhere to the highest degree of ethics.”
Commonwealth v. Michel, 409 N.E.2d 1293 (Mass. 1980).
“We leave open the question whether G. L. c. 233, § 20C, et seq., is the exclusive procedure by which a witness may be granted immunity.”
In re Grand Jury Investigation, No. 1977GJO0065 (Mass. Super. Ct. May 18, 2020).
“" G.L. c. 233, § 20C. Moreover, the "grant of immunity, and the resultant duty to testify, [ ] extend[s] to successive grand juries.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.