Commonwealth v. Palermo

**621This case arises from a violent encounter among four men, one of whom had dated the other's sister. In the fight that ensued, the men threw punches, brandished knives, and made statements about one another's mothers. The defendant was charged with one count of assault and battery and one count of threatening to commit a crime. He subsequently was convicted of the lesser included offense of simple assault and threatening to commit a crime.

The defendant argues, first, that the criminal docket of one of his friends, Charles,1 was admitted improperly as evidence against the defendant.…