Ward v. Commonwealth

Opinion by

Mr. Justice Musmanno,

On September 2, 1954, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania condemned for highway purposes a certain portion of the land owned by the plaintiff Gordon Ward in the City of Sharon. The Board of Viewers awarded him $13,000. On appeal to the Court of Common Pleas, the jury fixed the damages at $16,000. The Commonwealth has appealed, seeking a new trial on the sole ground that it was not permitted at the trial to ask Gordon Ward how much he had paid for the property when he purchased it in September, 1949, over five years prior to the condemnation proceedings.

When the…