Commonwealth v. Nicholas

Today we hold that where the judge did not see or hear the conduct that created a courtroom disturbance, the use of summary contempt, while understandable, was nonetheless improper.

Facts. On October 23, 2007, the defendant, Jaala Nicholas, testified for the Commonwealth in the murder trial of Anthony Davis. At the conclusion of Nicholas’s testimony, he walked toward the exit of the courtroom and made a gesture with his hand in the direction of Davis’s father and brother. In response to the gesture, the father stood up and an altercation ensued. The judge promptly removed the jury from the…