Wyche v. Commonwealth

The sole issue here is whether Nathaniel Jackson Wyche was denied a fair trial because the trial court refused to permit defendant’s counsel to examine a witness for the Commonwealth as to the number and nature of her prior felony convictions.

Wyche was tried by the court below and found guilty of a murder and a robbery which occurred in a state Alcoholic Beverage Control store in Boydton, Virginia, on February 1, 1975. Herbert Bowers, an employee of the store, was the victim of the robbery and an eyewitness to the murder of a fellow employee. He testified that Wyche was one of the robbers and…