463 Mass. 353 - Appellee Commonwealth Brief - Mass Cases

See Commonwealth v. Upton, 394 Mass. 363, 369-377
(1985). "Where an unnamed informant's tip is relied on
by the police as supplying probable cause to arrest and
to search, art. 14 requires that the information
satisfy the two-pronged standard set forth in Aguilar
v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108 (1964), and Spinelli v. United
States, 393 U.S. 410 (1969) ." Commonwealth v. Welch,
4 2 o Mass . 6 4 6 , 6 50 . ( 19 9 5 ) . "As a rule, the
Commonwealth must demonstrate some of the underlying
circumstances from which [a] the informant gleaned his
information [the "basis of knowledge" test] , and [b]
the law enforcement officials could have concluded the
informant was credible or reliable [the "veracity"
test]." Id. Corroboration can compensate for any
deficiencies in either or both prongs of the Aquilar­
Spinelli standard. Commonwealth v. Cast, 407 Mass.
891, 899 (1990). The motion judge's findings "are
binding in the absence of clear error" and this Court
will "view, with particular respect, the conclusions of
law which are based on them." Welch, 420 Mass. at 651.
The veracity test may be satisfied in a number of
ways, including if: (1) the informant has previously
provided information leading to arrests and subsequent
convictions, Commonwealth v. Byfield, 413 Mass. 426,
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