Commonwealth v. Anthony

717 A.2d 1015, 553 Pa. 55, 1998 Pa. LEXIS 1832
CourtSupreme Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedAugust 25, 1998
Docket014 W.D. Appeal Dkt. 1997
StatusPublished
Cited by36 cases

This text of 717 A.2d 1015 (Commonwealth v. Anthony) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Commonwealth v. Anthony, 717 A.2d 1015, 553 Pa. 55, 1998 Pa. LEXIS 1832 (Pa. 1998).

Opinions

OPINION OF THE COURT

CAPPY, Justice.

The question presented for review is whether the present prosecution of appellant is barred by the double jeopardy clause of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, principles of collateral estoppel, or the compulsory joinder provision of 18 Pa.C.S. § 110. (hereinafter § 110). As we find the present prosecution barred by the compulsory joinder provision of § 110 we do not reach the equitable or constitutional claims presented. For the reasons that follow, the decision of the Superior Court is reversed.

The nature of the claims presented for review necessitate a detailed description of the factual and procedural history of the case. At approximately 5:30 p.m. on March 28, 1994, appellant, who was then 20 years of age, drove to the residence of his 13 year old sister, Angela, in Corry, Pennsylvania. Angela asked appellant to pick up two of her friends, also juveniles, at another residence in Corry. Appellant and Angela proceeded to the home of Sue Ann, also 13 years of age, where they picked up Sue Ann and Michelle who was 15 years [58]*58of age. Appellant and Angela had previously brought Michelle to Corry from her family home in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, because Michelle wanted to run away from home. At the behest of Michelle, appellant proceeded to a location in Corry where he picked up two male juveniles, Steven and Lucas, each 12 years of age.

The group drove around the Corry area finally stopping at the residence of an acquaintance of appellant. Appellant stopped at this particular location knowing his acquaintance kept beer in his garage. Appellant, with the assistance of Steven and Lucas, burglarized the garage stealing beer, which was then shared by all the youths.

After imbibing some of the stolen beer the group decided to travel to Erie, Pennsylvania. Aware that they would need funds to continue their journey, appellant and the boys committed two additional burglaries on the way to Erie. At the first stop in Union City, Pennsylvania, they burglarized the home of Steven’s uncle. Appellant then drove to Waterford, Pennsylvania where he and the boys burglarized a garage and stole money from a truck within the garage, belonging to appellant’s stepfather.

The group continued on their way to Erie where they all stayed in one room rented by appellant at the Knights Inn Motel. The next day the group spent some time at a mall in Erie and then decided to proceed to the state of Florida. During the trip to Florida appellant, with the aid of Steven and Lucas, committed additional burglaries and thefts. The journey came to an abrupt end on April 1, 1994 in Florida when the car appellant was driving was stopped by the police and everyone was taken into custody.

Upon their return to Corry, Pennsylvania, appellant and four of the juveniles gave statements to the Corry Police outlining all of the above actions. The Corry Police forwarded the statements by appellant and the juveniles to the Pennsylvania State Police. The Corry Police Department brought charges against appellant on June 3, 1994 at Information No. 1485 of 1994, in the Court of Common Pleas of Erie County. [59]*59The charges at Information No. 1485 were interference with the custody of children; corruption of minors; and purchase, consumption, transportation of brewed beverages.1

On September 2, 1994, appellant pled guilty to three counts of corruption of minors at Information No. 1485 of 1994. Counts 1 and 2, to which appellant pled, charged that appellant had transported the two male juveniles to the state of Florida without the permission of their parents and during that period of time, did aid, abet, entice or encourage the minors in the commission of numerous criminal acts ranging from residential burglaries to the theft of money and handguns. Count 3 charged appellant with the transportation of a female juvenile to Florida without the permission of her parents, as well as encouraging the female juvenile to commit various criminal activities. Appellant was sentenced on October 21, 1995 to concurrent terms of five to eleven months incarceration and fined three hundred dollars ($300).

On December 6, 1994, the Pennsylvania State Police filed the following charges against Appellant, which were held for court in the Court of Common Pleas of Erie County, Pennsylvania, at Information No. 32 of 1995: burglary, criminal trespass, criminal conspiracy, theft by unlawful taking or disposition and criminal mischief. These charges arose directly from the activities of appellant, Steven, and Lucas on the evening of March 28, 1994 for the burglary of Steven’s uncle’s residence in Union Township, Union City, Erie County, Pennsylvania.

On June 20, 1995 appellant filed a pretrial Motion to Dismiss the charges at Information No. 32 of 1995, arguing that a prosecution on the present charges was barred either by double jeopardy, collateral estoppel or compulsory joinder. For the purpose of the hearing on the Motion to Dismiss, the parties stipulated to the facts as set forth in the appellant’s confession and the interlocking statements of Angela, Sue Ann, Steven and Lucas. The Motion to Dismiss was denied by the trial court. Appellant took an interlocutory appeal by [60]*60right from the denial of the pre-trial Motion to Dismiss. The Superior Court affirmed the decision of the trial court. This court granted allowance of appeal.

The denial of a pretrial Motion to Dismiss an indictment on double jeopardy grounds is subject to appellate review unless it appears that the claim is frivolous. Commonwealth v. Brady, 510 Pa. 336, 508 A.2d 286 (1986); Commonwealth v. Bolden, 472 Pa. 602, 373 A.2d 90 (1977). A Motion to Dismiss on the basis of the compulsory joinder rule of § 110 embodies the same constitutional protections underlying the double jeopardy clause justifying interlocutory appeal of such claims, consistent with the principles of Brady and Bolden. Commonwealth v. Bracalielly, 540 Pa. 460, 467-71, 658 A.2d 755, 759-60 (1995). Although appellant raises double jeopardy, collateral estoppel, and § 110 claims, if it is determined that the statutory bar of § 110 applies there is no necessity to reach the other claims. Commonwealth v. Hude, 500 Pa. 482, 486-87, 458 A.2d 177, 179 (1983).

Our analysis begins with the language of the compulsory joinder rule of § 110:

§ 110. When prosecution barred by former prosecution for different offense
Although a prosecution is for a violation of a different provision of the statutes than a former prosecution or is based on different facts, it is barred by such former prosecution under the following circumstances:
(1) The former prosecution resulted in an acquittal or in a conviction as defined in section 109 of this title (relating to when prosecution barred by former prosecution for the same offense) and the subsequent prosecution is for:
(i) any offense of which the defendant could have been convicted on the first prosecution;

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Bluebook (online)
717 A.2d 1015, 553 Pa. 55, 1998 Pa. LEXIS 1832, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-anthony-pa-1998.