Barnes v. Commonwealth

LAMBERT, Justice.

Claiming a number of trial errors, including the admission into evidence of an affidavit for a restraining order signed by the victim two and a half years prior to her death, appellant appeals to this Court from his murder conviction by which he was sentenced to an indeterminate term of confinement not to exceed fifty years.

The tragic facts of this case are not unfamiliar. Appellant and his wife married young. During their time together, appellant drank alcohol to excess, frequently assaulted his wife, and finally caused or contributed to her death.

According to appellant,…