Commonwealth v. Barrett

BIESTER, P. J.,

Defendant, Margaret Barrett, has been convicted by a jury of the offense of being a common scold. Defendant has moved for a new trial and has filed a motion in arrest of judgment, but presses only the motion in arrest of judgment, agreeing, inferentially, that the court committed no reversible trial error and that its charge was appropriate. The question for our determination is whether the evidence presented to the jury justified a conviction of this ancient common-law offense.

After a careful examination of the few cases relating to this charge, we believe that the trial…