The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has held that the rule on confrontation and lab reports established in Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts is not retroactive on collateral review in the case of Commonwealth v. Melendez-Diaz, SJC-10857.
Huh? How can that be? The court explains in footnote 2:
Huh? How can that be? The court explains in footnote 2:
The defendant in this case is the same person who was the defendant in the Melendez-Diaz case. The conviction that led to the Supreme Court decision arose from events that took place in Suffolk County on November 15, 2001. See Commonwealth v. Melendez-Diaz, 69 Mass.App.Ct. 1114 (2007), rev'd, 129 S.Ct. 2527 (2009). The conviction in this case arose from events that took place in Plymouth County on February 20, 2004.I can't link directly to the opinion due to Massachusetts's quirky system for posting opinions. You can access it through this site.

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