Commonwealth v. Scandle

401 A.2d 1332, 485 Pa. 310, 1979 Pa. LEXIS 599

Opinions

OPINION

LARSEN, Justice.

Appellant was convicted of criminal conspiracy and three counts of murder of the first degree in the Lebanon County Court of Common Pleas. Post-verdict motions were denied and this appeal follows.¹

In this appeal, appellant raises the following issues, all of which are either without merit or are waived:

1) That the district magistrate erred when, during defense counsel’s cross-examination of Commonwealth witness Joseph Ziemba at appellant’s preliminary hearing, he (the district magistrate) did not allow defense counsel to ask several questions;

2) That the trial court erred in denying appellant’s motion to sequester the jury;

3) That the trial court erred in permitting Commonwealth witness Agnes Halgash to testify that she consented to taking a polygraph examination;

4) That the trial court erred in denying appellant’s pretrial application for a psychiatric examination of Commonwealth witness Joseph Ziemba;

5) That the trial court erred in denying his pretrial application for discovery and inspection;

6) That the trial court erred in failing to strike Commonwealth witness Dr. Halbert Fillinger’s answer to a hypothetical question that was propounded by the prosecutor;

7) That the trial court erred in permitting Dr. Halbert Fillinger to testify that skeleton number one’s cause of death was not “inconsistent” with manual strangulation;

8) That “the Commonwealth violated . . . [appellant’s] constitutional rights by failing to disclose bargains . [that the Commonwealth] may have made” with Commonwealth witnesses.

9) That the Northumberland County Court of Common Pleas erred in increasing the amount of appellant’s bail;

10) That the Northumberland County Court of Common Pleas erred in refusing appellant’s first motion for a change of venue;

11) That the trial court erred in not permitting defense counsel to cross-examine Commonwealth witness Joseph Ziemba concerning the facts surrounding his involuntary sexual deviate intercourse conviction;

12) That “the Commonwealth violated . . . [appellant’s] constitutional right by failing to dispose of criminal charges pending” against Commonwealth witnesses Michael Lehman and Albert Patti prior to appellant’s trial; and

13) “That the Commonwealth violated . . . [his] constitutional rights by refusing to disclose evidence presumably exculpatory” to appellant. [Emphasis provided].

Judgments of sentence affirmed.

MANDERINO, J., filed a dissenting opinion.

Footnotes

1

. In response to the dissenting opinion, the error is harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Commonwealth v. Story, 476 Pa. 391, 383 A.2d 155 (1978).