Furnish v. Commonwealth

OPINION OF THE COURT

This appeal is from a judgment based on a jury verdict imposing the death penalty upon Appellant, Fred Furnish. For reasons hereinafter explained, the issues addressed pertain only to the sentencing phase of Appellant’s trial.

This case arose on June 25, 1998, when a 66-year-old widow was found strangled to death in her Crestview Hills home. The residence had been ransacked, and jewelry and credit cards were stolen. During the guilt phase of the trial, the defense conceded that Appellant was “a thief and a burglar” and that he had been at the residence on the day of the…