Commonwealth v. Byrd

JOHNSON, Judge.

In February, 1990, a jury convicted Haddrick Byrd of kidnapping, assault, recklessly endangering another person, and possessing instruments of crime. Following denial of post-verdict motions, the Honorable Lawrence A. Brown sentenced Byrd to aggregate terms of five and one-half to eleven years’ imprisonment, to be served concurrently with a pre-existing, unrelated life sentence.

Byrd, while an inmate at Graterford State Correctional Institution, took Irwin M. Schmuckler, principal of the Graterford School, as hostage, holding him for seven and one-half hours before releasing him…