Commonwealth v. Cole

417 A.2d 1276, 274 Pa. Super. 106, 1979 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3464
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedDecember 28, 1979
DocketNos. 330, 331, Special Transfer Docket
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 417 A.2d 1276 (Commonwealth v. Cole) 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
Commonwealth v. Cole, 417 A.2d 1276, 274 Pa. Super. 106, 1979 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3464 (Pa. Ct. App. 1979).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

On July 28, 1977, a jury convicted appellant of murder of the first degree and kidnapping and imposed capital punishment for murder and a consecutive term of imprisonment of 10 to 20 years for kidnapping. The trial court denied post-verdict motions. Following decision of Commonwealth v. Moody, 476 Pa. 223, 382 A.2d 442 (1977), cert. denied, 438 U.S. 914, 98 S.Ct. 3143, 57 L.Ed.2d 1160 (1978), declaring [109]*109unconstitutional the state death penalty provision, the trial court vacated the death sentence and imposed a sentence of life imprisonment. Appellant contends that (1) systematic exclusion of veniremen opposed to the death penalty denied him his right to trial by a jury of his peers; (2) the trial court’s questioning at voir dire indicated its desire that the jurors return a verdict of guilty and the death penalty; (3) the questions the Commonwealth and the trial court asked at voir dire did not reveal whether veniremen would refuse to impose a death penalty under any circumstances and removal for cause of veniremen based on their answers to these questions was improper; (4) an inculpatory statement he gave should have been suppressed; (5) the trial court improperly instructed the jury that the facts of the case did not warrant a verdict of guilty of voluntary manslaughter; and (6) the prosecutor improperly commented on appellant’s silence at trial. We affirm.

Appellant and a codefendant robbed the victim at gunpoint, beat him about the head with a pistol, drove him to an isolated area, ordered him to kneel and shot him three times in the back. Appellant admitted these facts in a statement he gave police which was introduced at trial.

Appellant argues that voir dire produced a jury prone to convict because veniremen opposed to the death penalty under all circumstances were excluded. This argument is without merit. Commonwealth v. Brown, 462 Pa. 578, 342 A.2d 84 (1975); Commonwealth v. Speller, 445 Pa. 32, 282 A.2d 26 (1971). Appellant also argues that the jury was prone to impose the death penalty. Because the trial court vacated appellant’s capital sentence and imposed a life sentence, we need not determine whether the jurors were .prone to impose capital punishment. See Commonwealth v. Dukes, 460 Pa. 180, 331 A.2d 478 (1975).

Appellant contends that the court’s questioning at voir dire indicated its opinion that he was guilty and deserved the death penalty. Our review of the record reveals that the trial court was impartial and restrained in its [110]*110questioning and did not indicate any opinion on guilt. Appellant also asserts that the questions the Commonwealth and the court asked at voir dire were improper. The Commonwealth and the court asked the veniremen if they had a moral or philosophical objection to imposing the death penalty under any circumstances and whether they could impose the death penalty in a murder case such as this one. These questions were proper. See Witherspoon v. Illinois, 391 U.S. 510, 88 S.Ct. 1770, 20 L.Ed.2d 776 (1968).

Appellant contends that the written inculpatory statement he gave after receiving Miranda warnings should have been suppressed as the tainted product of an oral statement he gave before receiving warnings and because he was under the influence of drugs at the time and could not make a voluntary statement. At the suppression hearing, the officer who conducted the questioning testified that appellant did not make an oral statement before receiving Miranda warnings and that appellant appeared fully in control of his faculties. Thus, sufficient evidence appears of record to support the finding of the suppression court that the written statement was admissible. See, e. g., Commonwealth v. Kichline, 468 Pa. 265, 361 A.2d 282 (1976). Appellant also argues that his statement should have been suppressed because his Miranda warnings do not appear on it. Appellant did not raise this issue in his motion to suppress. Consequently, the issue is not preserved for review. See Pa.R.Crim.P. 323(b); Commonwealth v. Evans, 267 Pa.Super. 59, 405 A.2d 1302 (1979) (citing cases).

Appellant contends that the trial court improperly instructed the jury that the facts of the case did not warrant a verdict of guilty of voluntary manslaughter. At trial, appellant requested a charge on voluntary manslaughter. See Commonwealth v. Jones, 457 Pa. 563, 319 A.2d 142 (1974), cert. denied, 419 U.S. 1000, 95 S.Ct. 316, 42 L.Ed.2d 274 (1974). The trial court instructed the jury that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that in every case where murder is charged, the defendant, upon request, is entitled to a charge on voluntary manslaughter; that the jury could [111]*111return a verdict of guilty of voluntary manslaughter in its mercy-dispensing power; that the court did not believe that the facts of the case indicated that appellant was guilty of voluntary manslaughter, but that the jury was not bound to follow his opinion; and that the jury could return a verdict of guilty of voluntary manslaughter even if the facts did not show that appellant was guilty of that crime.

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Related

Commonwealth v. McKendrick
514 A.2d 144 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)
Commonwealth v. Upchurch
513 A.2d 995 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)

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Bluebook (online)
417 A.2d 1276, 274 Pa. Super. 106, 1979 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3464, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-cole-pasuperct-1979.