Commonwealth v. Kirkner

OPINION

Justice EAKIN.

On July 4, 1999, police responded to a domestic disturbance at the home of Joseph and Kellie Kirkner. Mrs. Kirkner told police her husband choked her, struck her in the face, and shoved her to the ground. She accompanied police to their barracks where she permitted them to photograph her bruises and abrasions. She wrote a two-page statement about the incident.

Appellee was charged with simple assault and harassment. At the preliminary hearing, the Commonwealth presented sufficient evidence to hold him for trial, despite his wife’s failure to appear. The Commonwealth issued…