Com. v. Vargas, F.

CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedMay 20, 2015
Docket190 EDA 2013
StatusUnpublished

This text of Com. v. Vargas, F. (Com. v. Vargas, F.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Com. v. Vargas, F., (Pa. Ct. App. 2015).

Opinion

J-S38042-14

NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA, : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF : PENNSYLVANIA Appellee : : v. : : FRANKLIN VARGAS, : : Appellant : No. 190 EDA 2013

Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence Entered December 14, 2012, In the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County, Criminal Division, at No. CP-09-CR-0001710-2012.

BEFORE: FORD ELLIOTT, P.J.E., BOWES and SHOGAN, JJ.

MEMORANDUM BY SHOGAN, J.: FILED MAY 20, 2015

Appellant, Franklin Vargas, appeals from the judgment of sentence

entered in the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County. We affirm.

The trial court summarized the factual history of this case as follows:

In December of 2010, the Thirty-Second Statewide Investigating Grand Jury began hearing evidence concerning a large scale heroin distribution ring operating in six counties within the Commonwealth — Philadelphia, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Perry and Bucks. The Grand Jury issued three Presentments: Presentment No. 2, issued March 23, 2011, Presentment No. 8, issued June 21, 2011 and Presentment No. 18, issued October 13, 2011. Those Presentments collectively recommended the Attorney General arrest and prosecute 31 individuals, including [Appellant], identified as belonging to the “Black Widow” heroin distribution ring, for violations of the Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act, 35 P.S. § 780-113(a), the Corrupt Organizations statute and other offenses under the Crimes Code as a result of the widespread dissemination of heroin stamped “Black Widow” in southeast Pennsylvania. J-S38042-14

Pedro Vega and Noel Vega distributed large quantities of heroin throughout southeast Pennsylvania as members of the “Black Widow” organization. Their supplier was Fausto Ezequiel Valdez-Cordero, identified as the head of that organization. [Appellant] acted as a “drug runner,” the person who transported drugs and money between suppliers and purchasers, for Fausto Ezequiel Valdez-Cordero. [Appellant] worked as a “runner” for Valdez-Cordero for close to a two-month long period in 2009. During that time, the Vega brothers were receiving heroin deliveries two to three times per day. When their heroin supply ran out, one of the Vega brothers would call Fausto Ezequiel Valdez-Cordero. Fausto Ezequiel Valdez-Cordero would then send [Appellant] to the Vega brothers with a new supply. [Appellant] often met with other “Black Widow” members Jose Matos or Jose Sanchez in order to resupply the Vega branch of the distribution network. The heroin delivered by [Appellant] was customarily supplied to the Vega brothers two “racks” at a time; each rack would be wrapped in magazine paper with clear tape and would be attached to one another. During this period of time, [Appellant] utilized a white Toyota Corolla to complete the deliveries. The Vegas either paid Fausto Ezequiel Valdez- Cordero directly or gave the money to [Appellant] to deliver to Fausto Ezequiel Valdez-Cordero, often confirming receipt of the payment with Valdez-Cordero by telephone. The Vegas made a profit of $3,000 to $6,000 per day.

After the summer of 2009, co-conspirator Saviel Mieses Guzman replaced [Appellant] as the “runner” between Fausto Ezequiel Valdez-Cordero and the Vega brothers and continued to do so until his arrest in February of 2011. In mid-February of 2011, for approximately one week, [Appellant] again began delivering heroin to the Vega brothers for Fausto Ezequiel Valdez-Cordero. At that time, [Appellant] resided in a home that was owned by Pedro Vega. [Appellant] utilized a black four-door Chrysler with limousine tags to conduct this business. During this period of time, the Vega brothers paid [Appellant] at the time each supply of heroin was delivered. [Appellant’s] participation in the drug deliveries was confirmed by police surveillance. On February 23, 2011, law enforcement executed a search warrant on [Appellant’s] residence[, 2424 N. Reese Street in Philadelphia]. Inside the residence police found two cellular phones and $7,660 in cash.

-2- J-S38042-14

Trial Court Opinion, 4/2/13, at 2-4 (internal citations and footnotes omitted).

On May 23, 2012, Appellant filed an omnibus pre-trial motion seeking

to suppress the evidence found at 2424 N. Reese Street on the basis that

the search warrant was not supported by probable cause. The trial court

denied that motion.

Following a jury trial with co-defendant Darnell Ballard (“Ballard”),

Appellant was convicted of possession with intent to deliver a controlled

substance (“PWID”)-heroin, criminal conspiracy to deliver heroin, corrupt

organizations, and corrupt organizations-conspiracy. On December 14,

2012, Appellant was sentenced to an aggregate term of incarceration of nine

to twenty-five years. Appellant filed a timely notice of appeal.

Appellant presents the following issues for our review:

[1.] Did the trial court err in granting the Commonwealth’s motion for joinder at the start of trial?

[2.] Did the trial court erred [sic] in finding the affidavit of probable cause established the requisite probable cause necessary to search [Appellant’s] residence at 2424 North Reese Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania?

[3.] Did the trial court err in [sic] when, during the trial, it reversed its [sic] on a Motion in Limine ruling which precluded the Commonwealth from introducing documentation which identified [Appellant] as having various names?

Appellant’s Brief at 8.

Appellant first argues that the trial court’s joinder of the co-

defendants’ cases for trial was improper because the defenses were

-3- J-S38042-14

conflicting and the risk of jury confusion was great. Appellant’s Brief at 14.

Appellant asserts that separate conspiracies existed within the organization,

and the co-defendants were involved in separate conspiracies; thus,

Appellant argues that the co-defendants were not involved in the same

criminal activity. Id. at 16. Appellant also contends that the jury was not

able to separate the evidence because they were inundated with evidence

that supported the conclusion that “everyone was selling heroin.” Id. at 17.

Appellant maintains that he was prejudiced by being tried with co-defendant

Ballard1 because Ballard was the individual who ordered the supplies of

heroin, and that is the voice that the jury heard over and over again in the

courtroom. Id. at 17. Appellant asserts that because the evidence

established his mere presence during these deliveries, he was prejudiced by

being tried with the individual who consistently re-ordered the supplies of

heroin. Id.

We have stated the following regarding joinder:

Joinder and severance of separate indictments for trial is a discretionary function of the trial court; consequently, the trial court’s decision is subject to review for abuse of that discretion. Judicial discretion requires action in conformity with law, upon facts and circumstances judicially before the court, after hearing and due consideration. Consequently, an abuse of discretion consists not merely of errors in judgment by the trial court, but instead contemplates action unsupported by the evidence, at

1 We note that at times in his brief, Appellant incorrectly refers to his co- defendant as “Bullard.” Appellant’s Brief at 15-17.

-4- J-S38042-14

odds with governing law, or arising from improper motives personal to the judge.

Commonwealth v. Brookins, 10 A.3d 1251, 1255 (Pa. Super. 2010)

(internal citations and quotations omitted). Furthermore, Pa.R.Crim.P. 582

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Com. v. Vargas, F., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/com-v-vargas-f-pasuperct-2015.