Commonwealth v. Badman

OLSZEWSKI, Judge:

This is an appeal from a judgment of sentence. The facts of this case, as summarized by the trial court, are as follows:

The [appellant] was found guilty of murder in the third degree by a jury. The victim was Patricia Gebhart, a thirty-three year old woman who was somewhat mentally retarded and somewhat physically handicapped. Her only income was from social security and disability benefits.

The trial record shows that the [appellant] and the victim had been dating for a period of time and there was a history of the defendant verbally and physically abusing the victim and…