Commonwealth v. Hall

744 A.2d 1287, 2000 Pa. Super. 9, 2000 Pa. Super. LEXIS 8
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedJanuary 12, 2000
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 744 A.2d 1287 (Commonwealth v. Hall) 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. Hall, 744 A.2d 1287, 2000 Pa. Super. 9, 2000 Pa. Super. LEXIS 8 (Pa. Ct. App. 2000).

Opinion

JOHNSON, J.:

¶ 1 In this appeal, we determine whether the trial court properly refused to extend protection from discovery to “accident reconstruction and visibility studies” in the possession of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Transportation (PennDOT). PennDOT asserts that the “studies” and related photographs are exempt from discovery by section 3754 of the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Code. We conclude that because the “studies” and relat[1288]*1288ed photographs were not prepared by PennDOT, as required by section 3754(a), they are not exempt from discovery. Accordingly, we affirm the trial court’s order denying PennDOT’s motion to quash the subpoena.

¶ 2 This appeal arises out of a criminal action commenced by the District Attorney of Allegheny County (the Commonwealth) against defendant Gerald Hall. The Commonwealth charged Hall with, inter alia, vehicular homicide and driving under the influence in connection with the death of victim Gene Czysz. Czysz was riding in the passenger seat of Hall’s pickup truck when Hall drove into a construction area on Route 51 in the City of Pittsburgh and struck a construction trailer. Czysz died as a result of injuries sustained in the impact.

¶ 3 The underlying events occurred on August 7, 1997. On September 4, 1997, City of Pittsburgh police officers and investigators conducted an investigation of the accident scene, which included photographs of the construction zone. Hall asserts that the police investigation was conducted in preparation for his prosecution to show that the construction zone was marked and lighted properly. Hall argues that the investigation was unreliable because sworn testimony at a coroner’s inquest into Czysz’s death demonstrated that PennDOT employees changed the layout and markings of the construction zone within two or three days after the accident. Consequently, Hall filed an omnibus pretrial motion requesting that the results of the investigation be excluded from evidence. The trial court deferred disposition of the motion pending the outcome of this appeal.

¶ 4 Subsequently, on Hall’s motion, the court issued a subpoena duces tecum directing production, inter alia, of:

contracts and other documents identifying subcontractors or other entities providing traffic control functions at the site, including placement of traffic control devices; traffic protection plans; photographs of the site; and documents identifying persons with knowledge of the reconstruction study performed by the Pittsburgh Police on September 4, 1997.

Brief for Appellee at 5. PennDOT provided limited compliance, but withheld photographs of both the construction zone and the accident site as well as documents related to the “reconstruction and visibility studies performed by the Pittsburgh Police.” Brief for Appellee at 6. PennDOT asserted that the materials were protected from disclosure under section 3754(b) of the Motor Vehicle Code and moved to quash the subpoena. Brief for Appellant at 9. The trial court denied PennDOT’s motion to quash, but granted its petition to certify the matter for appellate review pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 702(b).

¶ 5 On appeal, a panel of this Court affirmed the trial court’s order, concluding that the public policy the legislature sought to protect in promulgating section 3754 would not be compromised by disclosure of the materials sought by the subpoena. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Dep’t of Transp. v. Taylor, 1999 PA Super 174. The Majority concluded accordingly that Hall’s right to due process of law outweighed the statutory privilege. Judge Del Sole filed a Concurring and Dissenting Opinion concurring in the Majority’s decision to affirm the trial court’s order, but disagreeing -with the Majority’s analysis. Judge Del Sole reasoned that the materials that Hall sought to obtain were not within the scope of section 3754 because they were not compiled by PennDOT.

¶ 6 Subsequently, we granted reargument before the Court En Banc. PennDOT raises the following question for our review:

Whether a Defendant in a criminal proceeding may compel production of Penn-DOT in-depth accident investigations and safety studies which are protected from discovery by statute[?]

Brief for Appellant at 4.

¶ 7 PennDOT argues that the materials it withheld from Hall are protected by a [1289]*1289statutory privilege from disclosure under section 3754(b) of the Motor Vehicle Code. Brief for Appellant at 9. Section 3754(b) provides generally that “[i]n-depth accident investigations and safety studies and information, records and reports used in their preparation shall not be discoverable or admissible as evidence.” PennDOT contends that, consequently, the materials are beyond the reach of the court subpoena. Id. at 11. PennDOT’s analysis provides no discussion of section 3754(a).

¶ 8 Our Supreme Court has admonished that evidentiary privileges, such as that asserted by PennDOT, are held in disfavor and may be applied only for limited purposes under closely circumscribed conditions. See Commonwealth v. Stewart, 547 Pa. 277, 282, 690 A.2d 195, 197 (1997) (affirming trial court’s refusal to quash subpoena directing production of records of Roman Catholic Diocese where subject matter of records was not within the scope of the statutory clergy-communicant privilege).

‘[E]xceptions to the demand for every man’s evidence are not lightly created nor expansively construed, for they are in derogation of the search for truth.’ Hutchinson[Hutchison] v. Luddy, 414 Pa.Super. 138, 146, 606 A.2d 905, 908 (1992) (quoting Herbert v. Lando, 441 U.S. 153, 175 [99 S.Ct. 1635, 60 L.Ed.2d 115] (1979)). Thus courts should accept testimonial privileges ‘only to the very limited extent that permitting a refusal to testify or excluding relevant evidence has a public good transcending the normally predominant principle of utilizing all rational means for ascertaining the truth.’ In re Grand Jury Investigation, 918 F.2d 374, 383 (3d Cir.1990) (quoting Trammel v. United States, 445 U.S. 40, 46 [100 S.Ct. 906, 63 L.Ed.2d 186] (1980)).

Stewart, 547 Pa. at 282, 690 A.2d at 197. Consequently, though our standard of review of matters of law is plenary, we must construe narrowly the provisions of any privilege that operates to hamper a party’s access to information potentially admissible in court. Id. Accordingly, we must scrutinize the circumstances under which the proponent of an evidentiary privilege wishes to apply the privilege to ascertain whether the information sought to be protected falls within the scope of the enabling legislation.

¶ 9 Upon review of section 3754, we conclude that the materials PennDOT seeks to protect do not fall within the scope of the evidentiary privilege on which PennDOT seeks to rely. Section 3754 provides, in its entirety, as follows:

§ 3754. Accident prevention investigations
(a) General rule.

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Crimmins v. PennDot
61 Pa. D. & C.4th 363 (Adams County Court of Common Pleas, 2003)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
744 A.2d 1287, 2000 Pa. Super. 9, 2000 Pa. Super. LEXIS 8, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-hall-pasuperct-2000.