Commonwealth v. Mazzatosta

28 Pa. D. & C.4th 177, 1993 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 6
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Luzerne County
DecidedDecember 22, 1993
Docketno. 1364 of 1990
StatusPublished

This text of 28 Pa. D. & C.4th 177 (Commonwealth v. Mazzatosta) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Luzerne County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Commonwealth v. Mazzatosta, 28 Pa. D. & C.4th 177, 1993 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 6 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1993).

Opinion

MUNDY, J.,

This matter comes before the court as a result of a number of motions and memoranda filed by both the Commonwealth and the defendants. They are as follows: Commonwealth’s [178]*178petition for revocation of accelerated rehabilitative disposition or, in the alternative, to schedule a restitution hearing; defendants’ motion to dismiss charges pursuant to Pa.R.Crim.P. 185; defendants’ pre-restitution hearing memorandum; Commonwealth’s restitution hearing memorandum; and, Commonwealth’s supplemental restitution hearing memorandum. Essentially, the “defendants,” Thomas Mazzatosta and John T. Luke, are challenging the Commonwealth’s attempts to secure restitution from them and have challenged both the propriety of any restitution order and the ability of the Commonwealth to proceed on such a request in light of the expiration of the two-year period of the ARD program.

The allegations are essentially as follows: defendants are shareholders of John T. Luke & Son Inc., a franchise sales and service agency for food equipment, scales and refrigeration. Tammac Corporation is a diversified financial service company which provides various services including equipment leasing, auto leasing, mobile home financing and credit reporting. Tammac employee A1 Gerstle was in charge of equipment leasing and had as part of his duties the oversight of the documentation, invoicing, and receipt of equipment sold to and leased by Tammac. John T. Luke & Company, upon the proposed lease of certain equipment by third parties, would present applications for the leasing of said equipment by the prospective lessee to Tammac for approval or denial. Mr. Gerstle would forward these applications to a lending institution for a credit review of the third party lessee and would then receive a response that the applicant was either approved or rej ected. If approved, Mr. Gerstle would proceed to conclude the lease between the third party and Tammac and pay defendants for the equipment. It is alleged that in July of 1987, Mr. Gerstle and the defendants agreed that all fixture proposed equipment invoices would be inflated [179]*179by 6 percent. Mr. Gerstle would receive 1/4 of the 6 percent as his commission for timely processing of the application and handling other additional paperwork.

By private criminal complaint, each defendant was charged on February 6, 1990 with forgery, securing execution of documents by deception, theft by deception, deceptive business practices, tampering with records of identification and criminal conspiracy.1 On February 22, 1991, defendants were each accepted into the ARD program for a period of two years. As a condition of their acceptance into the ARD program, each defendant agreed to make restitution in an amount to be determined by the court at a later date. Mr. Gerstle was also charged and likewise admitted into the ARD program.

Two restitution hearings were scheduled and subsequently continued by agreement of the parties. A third restitution hearing was scheduled for October 5, 1992, but in a pre-hearing conference, several issues were raised relating to whether or not this court has jurisdiction to schedule a restitution hearing given the fact that the defendants have, with exception of making restitution, completed the ARD program. Briefs having been submitted, and oral argument having been held, this court will now address the jurisdictional issues raised by the defendants.

We begin our discussion of the pertinent law with a review of the nature of the ARD program. The Superior Court in Commonwealth v. Feagley, 371 Pa. Super. 593, 598, 538 A.2d 895, 896 (1988) succinctly explained the program in this way:

“... ARD is a pre-trial diversionary program in which the district attorney agrees to suspend prosecution of a defendant contingent upon that subject’s successful participation in a program of rehabilitation. If ARD [180]*180is not completed successfully, the defendant may be prosecuted upon revocation of his participation in the program. Commonwealth v. Lutz, 508 Pa. 297, 495 A.2d 928 (1985). The purpose of this diversionary program is to attempt to rehabilitate the defendant without resort to a trial and ensuing conviction. During this time, the criminal proceedings are held in abeyance pending successful completion of the program or revocation for violation of the conditions. Commonwealth v. Krall, 290 Pa. Super. 1, 434 A.2d 99 (1981).... Acceptance of ARD is not the equivalent of a conviction, nor does successful completion of the program result in an acquittal.”2 (emphasis in original)

In situations where a defendant is dissatisfied with the terms and conditions of the ARD program as it applies to his or her own case, the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure provide the appropriate avenue ofrelief. Pursuantto Rules 179(d) and 183, the defendant must notify the trial court and the district attorney of his discontent. The trial court may then deny the Commonwealth’s motion for ARD, or in cases where the defendant becomes dissatisfied after the motion is approved, the trial court may enter a non-appealable interlocutory order terminating the defendant’s participation in the program. The case then proceeds in the same manner as if these proceedings had not taken place. Commonwealth v. Getz, 410 Pa. Super. 28, 598 A.2d 1309 (1991); Commonwealth v. Feagley, supra.

Pa.R.Crim.P. 184 directs the Commonwealth, should a violation occur, to file a motion alleging such violation. This motion must be filed during the period of the program or, if filed thereafter, must be filed within a reasonable time after the alleged violation was com[181]*181mitted. Once brought before the court, the defendant is given the opportunity to be heard. If the defendant is found to have committed the violation, the court may order the program be terminated and direct the Commonwealth proceed on the charges as provided by law. This is an unappealable order. Pa.R.Crim.P. 184.

With regard to restitution, the statutory authority for its imposition as part of a sentence is found in 42 Pa. C.S. §9721(c),3 and 18 Pa.C.S. §1106. The latter statutory enactment provides, inter alia, the method and manner of payment, the factors the court should consider in determining whether or not to order restitution, and the consequences for failure to comply. Subsection (h) contains definitions and subsection (g) reserves the victim’s right, regardless of any judgment or order of restitution, to recover from the offender as otherwise provided by law, provided that any civil award be reduced by the amount paid under the criminal judgment.

Case law addressing the issue of restitution provides further guidance. In Commonwealth v. Valent, 317 Pa. Super. 145, 463 A.2d 1127 (1983), the court, citing a long list of Superior Court cases, explained that restitution may be imposed either as a direct sentence or a condition of parole, but in either event, the order must be supported by the record. Commonwealth v.

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Related

United States v. Johns-Manville Corporation
231 F. Supp. 690 (E.D. Pennsylvania, 1964)
Commonwealth v. Krall
434 A.2d 99 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1981)
Commonwealth v. Fuqua
407 A.2d 24 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1979)
Commonwealth v. Feagley
538 A.2d 895 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1988)
Commonwealth v. Galloway
448 A.2d 568 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1982)
Commonwealth v. Erb
428 A.2d 574 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1981)
Commonwealth v. Balisteri
478 A.2d 5 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1984)
Commonwealth v. Seminko
443 A.2d 1192 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1982)
Commonwealth v. Lutz
495 A.2d 928 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1985)
Commonwealth v. Wood
446 A.2d 948 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1982)
Commonwealth v. Valent
463 A.2d 1127 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1983)
Commonwealth v. Penn Valley Resorts, Inc.
494 A.2d 1139 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1985)
Commonwealth v. Getz
598 A.2d 1309 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1991)

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Bluebook (online)
28 Pa. D. & C.4th 177, 1993 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 6, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-mazzatosta-pactcomplluzern-1993.