Commonwealth v. Leaner

Mr. McNeil and Mr. Tabron drove to the local U-Haul to return a rental truck. Mr. McNeil pulled into the parking lot and exited the truck to speak to two men standing nearby. Mr. Tabron remained inside the truck until he observed from the truck’s side mirror Mr. McNeil on the ground and a man wearing an orange hoodie going through his pockets. Mr. Tabron exited the truck and picked up a crowbar he discovered on the ground. Mr. Tabron waived the crowbar at the two men to scare them off, but the two men did not flee until a police car started chasing them. Mr. McNeil was taken to the hospital, where he was treated for a subdural hematoma. Mr. McNeil was later transferred to a nursing home, at which time he exhibited serious neurological defects. Mr. McNeil could not sit, move, speak, or otherwise care for himself. Mr. McNeil’s heart stopped beating about four months after the assault. During trial, the police officer testified that he observed a man wearing an orange hoodie strike Mr. McNeil in the head with a crowbar and identified Leaner (defendant) as the assailant. The medical examiner testified that Mr. McNeil’s cause of death was complications of blunt head trauma and that the manner of death was homicide. Although Mr. McNeil suffered pre-existing medical conditions, the medical examiner further opined that he was in functional health and able to care for himself in all respects prior to the assault. Leaner appealed his conviction of second-degree murder, challenging the commonwealth’s proof of causation.