In a criminal case, the state, through a prosecutor, initiates the suit, while in a civil case the victim brings the suit. Persons convicted of a crime may be incarcerated, fined, or both. Criminal defense attorneys represent clients who have been accused of committing a crime, and defend their rights at each stage of a misdemeanor or felony case -- from an arrest to an appeal after conviction. Criminal defense attorneys may be hired privately or provided by the government (called "public defenders").
Nonantum (from a Native American Algonquian word meaning "blessing or prayer") is one of the thirteen villages of Newton, Massachusetts, also known as Silver Lake or The Lake. The lake in question was filled with construction rubble and built over from the 1930s into the late 1950s. The neighborhood kids cleared the snow each winter and played hockey on it through the 1950s. At that point Silver Lake was more of a pond. The village is one of the centers of Italian population in Newton. Our Lady's High School later called Newton Catholic High School and now known as Trinity Catholic High School) is located in the village. The commercial area has numerous restaurants and food establishments featuring Italian cuisine. A historical report can be found at . Nonantum figures in early Massachusetts history as the home of Waban, one of the first Native Americans in Massachusetts to convert to Christianity. He had been taught by John Eliot.