Daung Sam v. Commonwealth

Opinion

KOONTZ, C.J.

In a jury trial, Daung Sam, appellant, was convicted of first degree murder, robbery, abduction, use of a firearm in the commission of these felonies and conspiracy to commit these felonies. On appeal Daung argues that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions; and (2) the trial court erred by refusing to instruct the jury that the common law defense of duress can be based upon threats to harm the defendant’s family. For the reasons that follow, we affirm Daung’s convictions.

The criminal charges against Daung arose from the following undisputed facts. On…