Commonwealth v. Cruz

62 Mass. App. Ct. 610 (2004)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

D stole a pair of blue jeans from Filene’s department store. Two plain-clothed security guards followed D into the mall. D claims they grabbed him by his arms without telling him who they were and he broke free and fled into the parking lot where the assaults by the two security guards continued. D threatened them with a gun, which he did not have. D believed the two young men were trying to rob him. He was frightened and he was trying to escape. On these alleged facts, D wanted an instruction on the use of nondeadly force in self-defense, which was refused. The jury found D guilty of unarmed robbery and two counts of assault by means of a dangerous weapon. On D’s postverdict motion the judge entered a finding of not guilty on the robbery indictment. She believed there was nothing about the facts that fit into a robbery. The items were taken secretly not from any person, and no violence or threat of violence occurred within the store or within the mall. Both parties appealed.