Tucker v. Commonwealth

CATINNA, Commissioner.

James L. Tucker’s murder trial in the Daviess Circuit Court resulted in a jury’s finding him guilty of voluntary manslaughter and fixing his punishment at twenty-one years in prison. Upon this appeal Tucker seeks reversal on two claimed errors: (1) It was prejudicial error to admit as evidence the results of a lie detector test; and (2) it was prejudicial error to instruct the jury on voluntary manslaughter.

Tucker was charged with the murder of Gwen Proffitt with whom he was living. Gwen died as a result of a wound inflicted by a .22 caliber revolver. At that time Tucker…