Cox v. Commonwealth

A jury convicted Frances L. Cox of embezzlement and fixed her punishment at ten years in the penitentiary; the trial court sentenced her accordingly. In this appeal, Cox claims that because she was refused access to certain bank records material to her de fense, she was denied the right to call for evidence in her favor as guaranteed by the Constitution of Virginia.

Cox, the Treasurer of the City of Fairfax, was indicted on June 21, 1982, and charged with embezzling city funds from August 3, 1979, to December 31, 1981. Her trial was to commence September 13, 1982.

On July 1, 1982, the trial…