Commonwealth v. Blose

53 Pa. D. & C.2d 106, 1971 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 327
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Mifflin County
DecidedJuly 2, 1971
Docketnos. 310, 311, 312 and 313
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 53 Pa. D. & C.2d 106 (Commonwealth v. Blose) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Mifflin County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Commonwealth v. Blose, 53 Pa. D. & C.2d 106, 1971 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 327 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1971).

Opinion

LEHMAN P. J.

Defendants have been charged with having committed various violations of the Game Law of June 3, 1937, P. L. 1225, as amended, 34 PS §1311.1, et seq., some alleged to have occurred in Granville Township and the others in Derry Township, Mifflin County, Pa. The violations charged consist of sales of parts of deer, transporting untagged deer, possessing deer in excess of the season limit, possessing parts of deer for sale or barter and killing an antlerless deer during the closed season.

The complaints for the violations alleged to have taken place in Granville Township were filed with Justice of the Peace Raymond C. Riley, whose office was in said township, in February 1966. Five of said complaints were against Ellsworth L. Blose (May term, 1966, no. 310), another complaint was against Ells-worth L. Blose and his brother, Maurice L. Blose (May term, 1966, no. 311), and three other complaints were against Maurice L. Blose (May term, 1966, no. 312).

[108]*108Justice of the Peace Riley issued a total of six warrants for the arrest of Ellsworth L. Blose and a total of four warrants for the arrest of Maurice L. Blose for said violations, a separate warrant for each of said violations. Ellsworth L. Blose was arrested on each of said six warrants, each arrest being at a different time. Maurice L. Blose was arrested on each of said four warrants, each arrest being at a different time. Each defendant provided bail for a subsequent hearing before Justice of the Peace Riley.

The two complaints for violations alleged to have taken place in Derry Township were filed in February 1966 with Justice of the Peace Oscar F. Brush, whose office is in the Borough of Lewistown. Ellsworth L. Blose was charged with having committed these violations (May term, 1966, no. 313).

Justice of the Peace Brush issued two warrants for the arrest of the said Ellsworth L. Blose but the warrants were returned unexecuted, whereupon two summonses were mailed said defendant by certified mail, return receipt requested. Counsel for defendant, in his motion to quash before said justice, alleged, inter alia, that the justice improperly required defendant to give bail for a hearing in response to said summons, but the transcript of said justice contains no bail pieces and no reference to any bail having been given.

Defendants were represented by counsel at the hearing conducted by each justice of the peace. Written motions to quash were presented by counsel at said hearings, alleging that defendants were improperly served as provided by Rule 107 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure and that the Commonwealth delayed in filing said complaints, thereby preventing defendants from having a speedy trial as guaranteed by article I, sec. 9 of the Con[109]*109stitution of Pennsylvania and the fourth amendment of the Constitution of the United States. Three additional reasons in support of the motions to quash filed with Justice of the Peace Brush (May term, 1966, no. 313) were that said justice improperly required bail for hearing before him, that he failed to certify to the complaints and that he was not the nearest available magistrate. In each instance, the motions to quash were denied by the justices.

After hearing testimony from the Commonwealth witnesses, with no testimony being offered on behalf of defendants, defendants were found guilty as charged in all of said complaints and were sentenced by the respective Justices to pay the costs and fines as designated in the Game Law, and in default to undergo imprisonment for the periods of time as provided.

All of said complaints are now before us by virtue of writs of certiorari directed to said justices. Regrettably, there has been an inordinate delay in disposing of these matters caused, in large measure, by our not being provided with a brief from one of the counsel and failure to list for argument.

The exceptions to the transcripts may be summarized as follows:

1. That Justice of the Peace Riley failed to comply with Rule 107 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, which said rule provides for the mandatory use of a summons rather than a warrant where defendants are known residents.

2. That Justice of the Peace Brush failed to comply with Rule 111 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, which said rule provides that a summons shall be served either upon defendant personally or by registered mail, return receipt requested.1

[110]*1103. That Justices of the Peace Riley and Brush were not the nearest available justices of the peace.

4. That Justices of the Peace Riley and Brush failed to comply with Rule 106 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, which said rule requires that a complaint be endorsed with the signed certificate of said justice.

5. That the transcripts of said Justices were not signed.

6. That the sentences imposed by Justices of the Peace Riley and Brush and the act of assembly upon which they are based are unconstitutional.

7. That by reason of the delay in the filing of complaints, defendants were not afforded speedy trials as provided by article I, sec. 9, of the Constitution of Pennsylvania and the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States.

We will discuss each of said exceptions after first noting that certiorari limits this court’s inquiry to the regularity of the proceedings as shown by the record, provided the justice of the peace has jurisdiction and is not guilty of misconduct on his part. The sufficiency of the evidence is not reviewable on certiorari: Commonwealth v. Burall, 146 Pa. Superior Ct. 525, 22 A.2d 619. Every presumption consistent with the record must be made in favor of its regularity: Polis v. Raphael, 160 Pa. Superior Ct. 544, 52 A.2d 355; Commonwealth v. Fondak, 44 D. & C. 2d 337.

Rule 107 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, 19 PS Appendix, effective January 1, 19652 provides as follows:

“(a) If the complaint before arrest charges only [111]*111a summary offense, the issuing authority shall issue a summons and not a warrant of arrest, except as provided in clause (b).

“(b) A warrant of arrest shall be issued only if:

“(1) The summons has been served upon and disobeyed by defendant;

“(2) The summons has been returned undelivered; or

“(3) The defendant is unknown, or a nonresident, or not known to be a resident and the issuing authority has reasonable grounds to believe that the defendant will not obey a summons.

“(c) This rule shall not apply to arrest on view.”

Appended to said rule appear the following:

“Note: The Act of September 18, 1961, P. L. 1464, §§1-7, 19 PS §§12.1-7 is suspended by this rule. See Rule 128.

“Comment:3 This rule provides for the mandatory use of a summons instead of a warrant in summary cases, unless the issuing authority has reasonable grounds to believe that a defendant will not obey a summons.

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Bluebook (online)
53 Pa. D. & C.2d 106, 1971 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 327, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-blose-pactcomplmiffli-1971.