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Defense urges vacation of Combs conviction, citing limited mobility and weak evidence
Summary
In Commonwealth v. Matthew Combs, defense counsel argued the evidence was insufficient to support attempted or threatened battery where the defendant did not swing a bat, had a plastic cast limiting mobility, and the victim was absent from trial; the Commonwealth urged deference to the jury and cited case law supporting upholding a general verdict.
Panel Chief Justice Vicky Henry heard argument in Commonwealth v. Matthew Combs on March 2, 2026, where defense counsel Adriana Contrathesi asked the court to vacate Combs’s conviction for assault-related charges on insufficiency grounds.
Contrathesi told the court the defendant had been offered pretrial probation but chose not to accept it and emphasized several trial facts she said undercut the conviction: Combs had a plastic cast on his leg at the time of the incident,…
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