Commonwealth v. Stambaugh

BECK, Judge:

This is an appeal from a judgment of sentence entered after a jury convicted appellant of raping his minor stepdaughter in violation of Section 3121 of the Crimes Code, 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 3121.

Appellant George Stambaugh and his wife were married in July 1977 and they lived together with his stepdaughter, the complainant, and four other children. Testimony elicited at the trial painted a picture of the family’s domestic life as one pervaded by violence and brutality. Appellant’s wife testified that she and her children had been severely beaten by him on many occasions. A number of…