Commonwealth v. Brooks

OPINION

Justice NIGRO.

Following a jury trial, Appellant Billy Brooks was found guilty of first-degree murder and possession of an instrument of- crime (“PIC”). The jury returned a verdict of death, and on January 23, 1992, the trial court formally imposed the death sentence. Appellant filed post-sentence motions, which the trial court denied. This direct appeal followed, and we now reverse and remand the matter for a new trial.1

On December 26,1990, Appellant, an inmate at Holmesburg prison, stabbed and killed another inmate, Eric Vaughn, during an argument over a bathrobe. Appellant was…