Massachusetts General Laws ch. 21A sec. 10G – Requests for name and address; penalties for refusal to provide information; notices of violations; appearances and payment of fines; seizure and forfeitures
Section 10G. If the director, his assistant or any environmental police officer, deputy environmental police officer, members of the state police, local police, local town law enforcement officials in shellfish beds over which they have jurisdiction, or harbormasters acting pursuant to authority arising under chapter 90B, employed to enforce the sections contained in section 10H determines that a violation thereof has occurred or is occurring, he may request the offender state his name and address.
Terms Used In Massachusetts General Laws ch. 21A sec. 10G
- Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Interests: includes any form of membership in a domestic or foreign nonprofit corporation. See Massachusetts General Laws ch. 156D sec. 11.01
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
- Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
Whoever, upon such request, refuses to state his name and address may be arrested without a warrant, or if he states a false name and address or a name and address which is not his name and address in ordinary use, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $200 dollars. Such officer may, as an alternative to instituting criminal proceedings, forthwith give to the offender a written notice to appear before the clerk of the district court having jurisdiction at any time during office hours, not later than 21 days after the date of such violation.
Six copies of such notice shall be made and each shall contain the name and address of the offender and, if served with the notice in hand at the time of such violation, the number of his license, if any, to operate motor vehicles; the registration number of the vehicle or motorboat involved, if any; the number of the license, certificate of permit, if any, issued pursuant to chapter 130 or chapter 131 which is relevant to the violation; the specific offense or offenses charged and the time and place of the violation; and the time and place for his required appearance. The notice shall be signed by the officer, and shall be signed by the offender in acknowledgment that the notice has been received. The officer shall deliver to the offender at the time and place of the violation a copy of the notice. At or before the completion of each tour of duty the officer shall forward to his commanding officer copies of each notice of such violation that he has issued during such tour. The commanding officer shall promptly mail 1 copy of each notice to the director and shall retain and safely preserve 1 copy. Before the end of his tour of duty such issuing officer shall forward to the respective court before whom the offender has been notified to appear the court copy of each notice of such violation that he has issued during such tour. The clerk of each district court shall maintain a separate docket of all such notices to appear.
Any person so notified to appear before the clerk of a district court may appear before such clerk and confess the offense charged, either personally or through an agent duly authorized in writing; or may mail to such clerk, with the citation, the fine provided on the citation, provided that it is the first offense for such violation within 2 calendar years.
At the time of such appearance the person shall provide the clerk with the notice issued by said officer and shall pay to the clerk the fine as provided in section 10H, such payment to be made only by cash, postal note, money order or certified check. Payment of the fine shall operate as a final disposition of the case. Proceedings under this paragraph shall not be deemed criminal and a person notified to appear before the clerk of a district court shall not be required to report to any probation officer, and no record of the case shall be entered in the probation records. If at any time the court finds that the interests of justice so require, it may cause a warrant to be issued as provided in section 32 of chapter 218.
If any person notified to appear before the clerk of the district court fails to so appear and pay the fine provided under this section or, having appeared, desires not to avail himself of the procedure for the non-criminal disposition of the case, the clerk shall notify the officer concerned, who shall forthwith make a criminal complaint. If any person fails to appear in accordance with a summons issued upon such complaint, the clerk shall send to such person by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice that the complaint is pending and that if the person fails to appear within 21 days from the sending of such notice, the court shall issue a warrant for his arrest.
The director, his assistants, any environmental police officers, deputy environmental police officers, members of the state police, local police and shellfish constables in areas of their respective jurisdiction empowered to enforce section 10H may seize any fish, birds, or mammals unlawfully taken or held which shall be forfeited to the commonwealth and disposed of by the director for the best interests of the commonwealth.
The secretary shall adopt rules and regulations consistent with this chapter and shall file the regulations in accordance with section 37 of chapter 30.
All fines, penalties and forfeitures in actions under this section or section 10H shall be paid to the general fund of the city or town in which the violation occurred; provided, however, that if the complaining officer is receiving compensation from the commonwealth, such fines, penalties and forfeitures shall be paid to the commonwealth; and provided, further, that if the complaining officer is an environmental police officer or deputy environmental police officer, such fines, penalties and forfeitures shall be retained by the division of law enforcement; and provided, further, that if the complaining officer is a chief park ranger or park ranger, such fines, penalties or forfeitures, in addition to those imposed pursuant to section 16 of chapter 270, shall be forwarded to the department of conservation and recreation to be deposited as revenue and shall be applicable to the department’s retained revenue account. At the end of each fiscal year, the office of law enforcement shall pay the Inland Fish and Game Fund an amount equivalent to the sum of all fines, penalties and forfeitures received by the office of law enforcement during such fiscal year for violations of chapter 131 or the regulations promulgated under this chapter.
The director shall issue books of non-criminal citation forms to the enforcement personnel authorized under this section. The director may charge a reasonable fee for such citation forms in accordance with section 3B of chapter 7.