Thomas B. Spain

The case involved Leander Tungate, who was charged with multiple counts of first-degree sexual abuse of girls under age twelve at a daycare center operated by his wife. After trial, he was convicted on three counts and sentenced to three years in prison. The court affirmed the convictions, holding that the evidence was sufficient for the jury to infer the required element of sexual gratification from the circumstances, that the trial court properly excluded expert testimony on pedophilia indicators because it lacked scientific basis and invaded the jury's role, that denial of a jury view of the premises was within the court's discretion given available photos and video, and that no lesser-included offense instruction was warranted because the victims' ages were undisputed.

criminal lawprocedure

The case involved Joseph Lee Rowland, a juvenile charged with two counts of first-degree assault for shooting his stepmother Carol and stepsister Kathy in 1991, resulting in Carol's permanent injuries and a PTSD diagnosis. After Carol underwent hypnosis treatment that refreshed her recollection of the incident, the defense moved to suppress her testimony as hypnotically influenced, but the trial court denied the motion while imposing limits on mentioning hypnosis at trial. Rowland then entered a conditional Alford plea to reduced second-degree assault charges and received concurrent ten-year sentences as a youthful offender. The Kentucky Supreme Court affirmed the conviction and sentence, holding that the testimony was admissible because Carol's pre- and post-hypnosis statements showed minimal differences and were sufficiently reliable, rejecting a per se ban on such evidence. The court also upheld the denial of additional expert funding for the defense.

criminal lawprocedure

Sanborn v. Commonwealth was an automatic appeal from a death sentence imposed after a retrial in Jefferson Circuit Court, where the defendant was convicted of intentional murder, first-degree kidnapping, first-degree rape, and first-degree sodomy of Barbara Heilman. The Kentucky Supreme Court affirmed the convictions and all sentences, including death for the murder and consecutive 95-year terms for the other offenses. The court reviewed numerous claims of error, including prosecutorial misconduct, evidentiary issues, and improper testimony regarding privileged communications, but concluded that none amounted to prejudicial error requiring reversal. The opinion addressed the facts of the 1983 crimes, the defendant's incriminating statements and forensic links, and the procedural history from the prior reversal in 1988, while rejecting arguments that would have required a new trial.

criminal lawprocedure

In Simpson v. Commonwealth, the appellant was convicted by a jury of kidnapping, first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, first-degree wanton endangerment, and theft after abducting a woman at night, driving her 1.7 miles to a secluded field, sexually assaulting her, threatening her, and stealing her property. The Kentucky Supreme Court affirmed the convictions, holding that the kidnapping exemption under KRS 509.050 did not apply because the restraint exceeded what is ordinarily incidental to the sexual offenses, and that sufficient evidence supported the wanton endangerment charge. The court vacated the fines, however, because KRS 534.030 requires the trial judge—not the jury—to determine the appropriateness and amount of any fine after considering factors including the defendant's indigency.

criminal lawprocedure

The case involved John S. Johnson’s appeal from his conviction for the murder of Brian Sizemore, for which he received a life sentence. Johnson argued that the prosecution denied him due process by failing to preserve physical evidence, including the victim’s truck, a wooden post, and a table containing bullet fragments, and by allowing a sequestered juror who expressed bias and contempt to remain on the panel. The court held that no bad faith was shown in the handling of the evidence, that photographs and other materials adequately substituted for the items, and that any juror issues did not warrant reversal. It therefore affirmed the conviction.

criminal lawprocedure

In Cecil v. Commonwealth, Gabrielle Cecil was convicted by a Jefferson Circuit Court jury of intentional murder while mentally ill after shooting her former boyfriend Ronnie Hibbard in a store parking lot amid a series of confrontations involving jealousy over his relationship with her former roommate. The trial court imposed the recommended life sentence. On appeal, the Kentucky Supreme Court affirmed the conviction and sentence, holding that the evidence did not warrant a jury instruction on extreme emotional disturbance that could have supported a manslaughter verdict under the standards set in prior precedent such as McClellan v. Commonwealth.

criminal law