Commonwealth v. Irwin

The defendant, Christopher Irwin, was indicted on numerous charges for shoving, hitting, and strangling his ex-girl friend (the victim). Following a jury trial in the Superior Court, he was convicted on three indictments for strangulation, one indictment for assault by means of a dangerous weapon, and two indictments for assault and battery on a family or household member.2 On appeal, he contends that the judge abused her discretion in denying his motion for issuance of summons seeking the victim's counselling records. We affirm.

Background. 1. Facts. The victim and the defendant had an "on…