Day v. Commonwealth
2012 Ky. LEXIS 11
Ky.2012Background
- Day was convicted of sexual abuse, first-degree, following a jury trial and sentenced to three years.
- During guilt-phase deliberations, the jury asked for the penalty range of the lesser included offense; the court provided 1–5 years.
- The prosecution presented testimony from R.F., her mother, a trooper, plus trial evidence of Day’s move to West Virginia as flight evidence and various scientific tests on physical evidence.
- Scientific testing yielded inconclusive or conflicting results regarding sperm/DNA; Day presented a defense expert challenging the testing and contamination risks.
- Day appealed; the Court of Appeals affirmed; the Supreme Court granted discretionary review and reversed Day’s conviction on the penalty-range error, remanding the case.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Penalty-range instruction during guilt phase | Day | Day objects to penalty-range instruction during guilt phase | Conviction reversed; remanded for new proceedings |
| Evidence of flight admissibility | Day asserts flight evidence was improperly admitted | Commonwealth contends flight evidence admissible under law | Flight evidence admissible; preserved for retrial |
| Discovery violations and related comments | Day pled discovery shortcomings and inappropriate comments | Commonwealth argues no abuse of discretion | No reversible error; issues remain for retrial context |
Key Cases Cited
- Fugate v. Commonwealth, 993 S.W.2d 931 (Ky.1999) (voir dire penalty information contemplated)
- Norton v. Commonwealth, 37 S.W.3d 750 (Ky.2001) (penalty evidence generally inadmissible during guilt phase)
- Philpott v. Commonwealth, 75 S.W.3d 209 (Ky.2002) (no penalty-range instructions in felony trial)
- Lawson v. Commonwealth, 53 S.W.3d 534 (Ky.2001) (voir dire limited to indicted offenses' penalty range)
- Carver v. Commonwealth, 303 S.W.3d 110 (Ky.2010) (context for penalty matters in trial)
- Rodriguez v. Commonwealth, 107 S.W.3d 215 (Ky.2003) (flight evidence admissibility)
- Jackson v. Commonwealth, 199 S.W.3d 763 (Ky.App.2006) (flight consciousness of guilt considerations)
- Kotteakos v. United States, 328 U.S. 750 (1946) (harmless error standard for non-constitutional error)