Beard v. Commonwealth

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions but reversed and remanded for a new penalty phase, holding that palpable error occurred when the Commonwealth gave the jury incorrect parole eligibility information.

Defendant was convicted of first-degree burglary, second-degree assault, and second-degree wanton endangerment. Defendant was sentenced to thirty years in prison. The Supreme Court affirmed the convictions but reversed Defendant's sentence, holding that the trial court (1) did not commit palpable error by allowing certain hearsay testimony into evidence; (2) did not err by denying Defendant's requested instructions on second-degree burglary and first-degree criminal trespass; (3) did not err by providing instructions to the jury during deliberation; (4) committed palpable error by not correcting the Commonwealth's misstatement of Defendant's parole eligibility on the first-degree burglary charge; and (5) erred by limiting Defendant's testimony during the penalty phase.