Commonwealth v. Hines

4 Pa. D. & C.5th 389
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Berks County
DecidedApril 22, 2008
Docketno. 5330-05
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 4 Pa. D. & C.5th 389 (Commonwealth v. Hines) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Berks County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Commonwealth v. Hines, 4 Pa. D. & C.5th 389 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2008).

Opinion

BUCCI, J,

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

The appellant, Craig Ryan Hines, was charged with criminal homicide,1 murder of the first degree,2 murder of the third degree,3 aggravated assault,4 persons not to possess, use, manufacture, control, sell or transfer fire[391]*391arms,5 firearms not to be carried without a license,6 possessing instrument of crime,7 recklessly endangering another person,8 conspiracy to commit criminal homicide,9 conspiracy to commit murder of the first degree,10 conspiracy to commit murder of the third degree,11 conspiracy to commit aggravated assault,12 and conspiracy to commit recklessly endangering another person.13 The charges arose out of a shooting that occurred near midnight on July 1, 2000 at the intersection of Schuylkill and Buttonwood Streets, in the City of Reading, Berks County, and which resulted in the death of Lowell Nicholas.

Appellant’s case was consolidated with that of co-defendants Jesus Adames, Carlos Holguin, and Christopher Ferreil. The jury found each of the four co-defendants guilty of two counts of aggravated assault,14 one count of firearms not to be carried without a license,15 one count of possession of instruments of crime,16 and two counts of recklessly endangering another person.17 This court sentenced appellant to an aggregate sentence [392]*392of not less than 15 years nor more than 30 years incarceration in a state correctional facility.

Appellant, through his trial counsel, Kurt B. Geishauser, Esquire, filed a timely notice of appeal and a concise statement of matters complained of on appeal. However, Mr. Gieshauser failed to file a brief in the Superior Court on appellant’s behalf and the appeal was dismissed on July 20, 2006.

OnNovember 29,2006, appellant filed a pro se PCRA petition. This court appointed Michael Dautrich, Esquire to represent appellant, and on December 26, 2007, he filed an amended PCRA petition requesting the reinstatement of appellant’s right to direct appeal. On January 25, 2008, this court granted appellant leave to appeal his judgment of sentence nunc pro tunc. On February 21, 2008, appellant filed a notice of appeal to the Pennsylvania Superior Court. On March 5, 2008, this court ordered appellant to file a concise statement of errors complained of on appeal, pursuant to Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure § 1925(b). Appellant filed his concise statement on March 24, 2008, raising 23 issues.18

STATEMENT OF FACTS

At trial, the Commonwealth presented the testimony of five eyewitnesses who on July 1, 2000, saw a white van pull next to the passenger side of a vehicle driven by Felix Cruz with the victim, Lowell Nicholas, riding in the passenger seat. (Notes of testimony, 5/2/05-5/6/05, [393]*393at 498-587.) All five of the witnesses heard gunshots, two of them saw glass breaking between the two vehicles and one witness actually saw gunfire between the two cars. Id. One of the eyewitnesses, William Morales, was able to identify at trial the four occupants of the white van.

Later, the Commonwealth recovered spent .40 caliber bullet shells from the street and from the white Honda Accord station wagon in which Lowell Nicholas was a passenger. (NT, 5/12/05, at 889.) They also recovered a bullet fragment from the brain of the victim. (NT, 5/12/05, at 901.) At trial, the Commonwealth’s expert testified that this evidence came from at least two different guns. (NT, 5/16/06, at 174-75.)

Ten days after the incident, on July 11, 2000, Jesse Vargas took a white Chevy Ventura van to Cindy Rowe Auto Glass Repair Shop to have the windshield and a driver’s side window replaced, as well as to have the interior of the van cleaned. (NT, 5/2/05-5/6/05, at 694, 707.) Vargas came into Cindy Rowe’s in the afternoon of July 11,2000 and spoke to the manager about the work requested. Later that evening, after business hours, an unknown person delivered the van to Cindy Rowe’s. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 17-18.) In the course of repairing the van, an employee of Cindy Rowe’s found a bullet slug at the base of the van’s windshield and found a empty bullet shell casing on the floor behind the driver’s seat. (NT, 5/2/05-5/6/05, at 695-96.) These items were later given to Criminal Investigator Cabrera.

Vargas (also known as Luis Jesse Martinez) testified at trial that he rented the van from Kulp Auto Rentals [394]*394and that he did so as a favor for a friend, defendant Carlos Holguin. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 350-52.) He further testified that Holguin accompanied him to pick up the van, gave him money for the rental, and took possession of the van after exchanging cars with him. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 352-53.) Vargas did not see the white van again until July 11, 2000, the day he contacted Cindy Rowe’s Auto Glass to have the van windows replaced.

Commonwealth witness Angel Rivera testified that on July 1,2000, the night Lowell Nicholas was shot, he was at Jesus Adames’ house with the appellant and his three co-defendants, Carlos Holguin, Jesus Adames and Christopher Ferreil. Rivera testified that he left Adames’ house with appellant and that appellant drove him to McKnight’s Cafe in a white van. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 45-48.) After stopping at McKnight’s and picking up Joanny Arroyo, appellant drove Rivera and Arroyo to the Econolodge in Wyomissing. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 48.) Arrangements were made for Rivera to call appellant when he was ready to be picked up from the Econolodge later that evening. However, no one answered the phone the first few times Rivera called. Finally, Christopher Ferreil answered the phone and told Angel Rivera that no one could pick him up. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 49-51.)

Angel Rivera further testified that he was again at Adames’ house the following day. Rivera testified that he heard appellant say that he was stopped at a red light on Buttonwood and that a Honda Accord pulled up next to them in the left-hand turning lane to turn onto Schuylkill Avenue. Appellant then looked over at the Honda Accord and began firing into the car. (NT, 5/9/05-[395]*3955/11/05, at 55.) Appellant also said he was hiding between the front and rear driver’s side windows while he was firing and that he could feel the heat from a co-defendant’s gun on his face. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 56-57.)

Earlier that day, on July 1, 2000, while at Adames’ house, Rivera saw appellant in possession of a .40 caliber Sig Sauer. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 62.) Commonwealth witness William Morales testified that on July 1, 2000, he saw a white van pull up next to the passenger side of another white car at the corner of Schuylkill and Buttonwood which was in the left turning lane. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 572-73.) The witness heard someone say, “What the fuck are you looking at?,” saw both sliding doors of the van open, and then heard gunshots coming from the white van. (NT, 5/9/05-5/11/05, at 575.) When the van drove past him, the witness recognized all four defendants, Christopher Ferreil, Carlos Holguin, Craig Hines and Jesus Adames, as the occupants of the van.

DISCUSSION

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Bluebook (online)
4 Pa. D. & C.5th 389, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-hines-pactcomplberks-2008.