Commonwealth v. Smiley

6 Pa. D. & C.4th 300, 1990 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 272
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Fulton County
DecidedMay 24, 1990
Docketno. 145 of 1989
StatusPublished

This text of 6 Pa. D. & C.4th 300 (Commonwealth v. Smiley) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Fulton County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Commonwealth v. Smiley, 6 Pa. D. & C.4th 300, 1990 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 272 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1990).

Opinion

. KELLER, P.J.,

Andrew David Smiley was charged with one count of driving under the influence of alcohol.

On March 16, 1990, the defendant appeared for mandatory arraignment and pleaded guilty to driving under the influence. He conceded it was his second offense.

On April 10, 1990, defendant was sentenced to pay a fine of $450 and undergo imprisonment in the Bedford County Prison for a period of not less than 30 days nor more than 23 months. Defendant was also ordered to pay a CAT fund fine of $100. Upon motion of defendant, the court ordered the execution of the sentence imposed to be deferred until April 25, 1990. Defendant’s motion for modification of sentence was filed April 10, 1990, and denied the same date. On April 19, 1990, we ordered a rule to issue upon the district attorney to show cause why nominal bail pending appeal should not be granted with the rule returnable May 8, 1990. It was further ordered that execution of the sentence imposed on April 10, 1990 be stayed pending the court’s disposition of the within motion for bail pending appeal.

On April 27, 1990, defendant filed his notice of appeal and pursuant to Pa.R'.A.P. 1925(b) was ordered on April 30,1990 to file a statement of matters [302]*302complained of on appeal. The statement of matters complained of on appeal was filed May 3, 1990. On May 8, 1990, we entered an order directing defendant be released and continued on bail on his own recognizance pending a final determination of his appeal. The transcript of the sentencing hearing was completed and lodged May 8, 1990. This supplemental opinion is filed in support of the sentence imposed on defendant by this court.

Defendant contends this court erred in refusing to consider defendant for sentencing to an inpatient alcohol rehabilitation program, and also erred in imposing a $100 CAT fine.

We will first address defendant’s contention that we erred in not sentencing him to an inpatient alcohol rehabilitation instead of the county prison.

Title 75 Pa.C.S. §3731(e) provides in pertinent part:

“(1) Any person violating any of the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree and the sentencing court shall order the person to pay a fine of not less than $300 and serve a minimum term of imprisonment of:
“(ii) not less than 30 days if the person has previously been convicted of an offense under this section or of an equivalent offense in this or other jurisdictions within the previous seven years.”

The statute refers to a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment. We must construe the language of the statute according to common and ordinary usage. The ordinary meaning of “imprisonment” is the lawful confinement of an individual to a correctional or similar institution. Commonwealth v. Kriston, 390 Pa. Super. 543, 568 A.2d 1306 (1990). Commonwealth v. Kriston, supra, held that an electronic home monitoring program does not constitute “imprisonment” in an institution. See Com[303]*303monwealth v. Sojourner, 513 Pa. 36, 518 A.2d 1145 (1986), (mandatory minimum sentence for driving under the influence meant that some term of incarceration is to be imposed); and Commonwealth v. Kearns, 365 Pa. Super. 13, 528 A.2d 992 (1987), (defendant should be sentenced to a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 days in prison.)

A second-time offender, as in the case at bar, must necessarily serve the minimum sentence in prison. A review of the legislative history of the drunk driving sentencing provisions compels the conclusion that in enacting the mandatory sentencing provisions the legislature intended to impose severe penalties for repeat offenders. This was done to send a clear and urgent message to those who continue to drive while under the influence of alcohol. Therefore, the statute provides that second-time offenders must serve a minimum of 30 days’ imprisonment. Both the plain meaning of the statute and the legislative debate and reports accompanying the enactment make very clear that what was contemplated was a period of confinement in a prison or similar institution. The primary purpose of the mandatory minimum sentence in section 3731(e) was to punish, not to rehabilitate. See Commonwealth v. Kriston, supra, (Beck,/., dissenting), and Commonwealth v. Conahan, 388 Pa. Super. 369, 565 A.2d 798 (1989).

Defendant relies on four cases as authority for his position. The first case being Commonwealth v. Conahan, supra, which we not only find distinguishable but also not authority for defendant’s position. Commonwealth v. Conahan is distinguishable in that the court was dealing with a voluntary participation in inpatient alcohol treatment programs, and not an involuntary participation. We also do not find it supports defendant’s position [304]*304since the court held the time served in an inpatient program cannot be credited against the mandatory sentence imposed by the court. The majority in Commonwealth v. Kriston, supra, (footnote 2) noted that in its recent decision in Commonwealth v. Conahan, it held that time served in an inpatient alcohol treatment program did not constitute service of a statutorily mandated minimum sentence of imprisonment. In Commonwealth v. Kriston, supra (Beck, dissenting) she observed the court left open the question of whether court-ordered confinement to an inpatient alcohol treatment would constitute imprisonment under the terms of the statute. The second case defendant relies on is Commonwealth v. Williamson, 384 Pa. Super. 646, 551 A.2d 598 (1988), and we find this reliance misplaced because this case is a memoranda and does not constitute precedent. Therefore, that case has no precedential authority. The last two cases defendant relies on are Commonwealth v. Jones, 211 Pa. Super. 366, 236 A.2d 834 (1967); and Commonwealth v. Usher, 264 Pa. Super. 435, 319 A.2d 1129 (1979). We find these cases to be distinguishable in that they do not deal with 75 Pa.C.S. §3731(e); the statutes the courts were interpreting do not use the word imprisonment but instead use the word custody. We do not find the two words to be synonymous. Therefore, we find defendant’s reliance on those two cases misplaced.

In our judgment Commonwealth v. Kriston, and Commonwealth v. Conahan required us to sentence defendant to 30 days in prison and not to an inpatient alcohol program.

Defendant next contends we erred in imposing a $100 CAT fund fine because such statute is unconstitutional, and if not unconstitutional by its terms, [305]*305it does not apply to offenses occurring prior to its effective date.

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Related

James v. Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority
477 A.2d 1302 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1984)
Commonwealth v. Conahan
565 A.2d 798 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1989)
Commonwealth v. Jones
543 A.2d 548 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1988)
Commonwealth v. Usher
399 A.2d 1129 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1979)
Commonwealth v. Kriston
568 A.2d 1306 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1990)
Commonwealth v. Gamber
506 A.2d 1324 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)
Commonwealth v. Kearns
528 A.2d 992 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1987)
Commonwealth v. Sojourner
518 A.2d 1145 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)
Commonwealth v. Jones
236 A.2d 834 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1967)

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Bluebook (online)
6 Pa. D. & C.4th 300, 1990 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 272, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-smiley-pactcomplfulton-1990.