In re J.C.

751 A.2d 1178, 2000 Pa. Super. 137, 2000 Pa. Super. LEXIS 630
Superior Court of Pennsylvania·Decided May 2, 2000·Published·Cited by 16 cases

Opinion

TAMILIA, J.:

¶ 1 This case presents one of the most serious, perplexing and accelerating forms of youthful conduct which society has faced in recent times. What was once the occasional bomb threat, telephoned to the principal’s office to trigger a shut down of a school to obtain a day off or to avoid a test, has escalated to planned coordinated threats which no longer can be handled summarily, and in every instance, as a result of tragic occurrences throughout the country, must be treated by schools, police and emergency services as potentially serious. Whether the threat is real or fraudulent, the result is devastating to society and the social fabric of the entire community. This case illustrates the difficulty in balancing the non-lethal fraud perpetrated and the disproportionate disarray that results, requiring a definitive response from the court to balance the needs of the child with the protection of society.

¶ 2 J.C., a minor, appeals the August 12, 1999 Order of disposition following an adjudication of delinquency. Upon review of the evidence, the court found appellant committed the delinquent act of making terroristic threats.1 Appellant was ordered to pay a $500 fine and placed at a Northern Tier Youth Services residential treatment facility subject to administrative review after six months and judicial review after nine months.

¶ 3 On April 23, 1999, appellant placed threatening hand-written notes and two packages purporting to contain bombs in the Delaware Valley Middle and High Schools.2 As the trial court explained in its Opinion, the discovery of these items “led to the evacuation of the school buildings, the disruption of school, the emergency response of numerous public protective personnel, and the fear and anxiety of hundreds.” (Trial Court Opinion, Thomson, P.J., December 17, 1999, at 1). Appellant presents the following challenges on appeal.

1. Where the Commonwealth’s witnesses placed the appellant in three different physical locations at approximately the same time, and the handwriting on the notes was not identified, was the evidence presented below sufficient to sustain the [1180] Commonwealth’s case beyond a reasonable doubt?
2. Whether the court committed a gross abuse of discretion in the disposition of the juvenile, and whether such disposition constitutes cruel and unusual punishment?

(Appellant’s brief at 4.)

In evaluating a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, we must determine whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the Commonwealth as verdict winner, together with all reasonable inferences therefrom, the trier of fact could have found that each and every element of the crimes charged was established beyond a reasonable doubt. In making this determination, we must evaluate the entire trial record and consider all the evidence actually received. It is within the province of the fact finder to determine the weight to be accorded each witness’s testimony and to believe all, part, or none of the evidence introduced at trial.

In the Interest of B.R., 732 A.2d 633, 636 (Pa.Super.1999) (internal quotations and citations omitted).

¶ 4 Appellant argues the testimony was inconsistent with respect to where she was at the relevant times during the April 23, 1999 school day.

¶ 5 Several students testified regarding their interaction with appellant that day. Jennifer Ricca and Angelique Weissang testified that appellant approached both of them in a bathroom, admitted to being the source of the threats and pointed out one of the packages she had placed in a girl’s bathroom. Amy Rawcliffe also testified appellant admitted to her that she was responsible for the bomb scare. When Rawcliffe expressed doubt as to appellant’s admission, appellant pointed to a place in a bathroom ceiling where the tile was disturbed and indicated there was a bomb there. Appellant made two additional admissions that she caused the bomb scare; one to a student in the hall prior to the building evacuation and the other to a student near the school bus during the evacuation. Early the following week, appellant yet again was heard admitting that she caused the bomb scare.

¶ 6 The evidence presented by school officials established that appellant was not where she was supposed to be at the relevant times. Furthermore, despite slight variations in the testimony, the witnesses testified credibly with respect to appellant’s statements and their observations. It is clear that appellant not only wrote the threatening notes and left the packages, but went a long way toward incriminating herself by telling other students what she had done. The trial court characterized the evidence as overwhelming, finding it satisfied the requirement of beyond a reasonable doubt. Our careful, review of the record compels us to agree.

¶ 7 Appellant contends the prosecution should have introduced handwriting comparisons to prove she authored the threatening notes. We disagree. In the present case, the overwhelming evidence establishes that appellant wrote the notes and, therefore, handwriting analysis was unnecessary. Appellant repeatedly admitted to the witnesses she had written the notes and the notes themselves communicate appellant’s threats of violence.

A person is guilty of terroristic threats ... if he or she threatens to commit any crime of violence with intent to terrorize another or to cause- evacuation of a building, place of assembly, or facility of public transportation, or otherwise to cause serious public inconvenience, or in reckless disregard of the risk of causing such terror or inconvenience.
Neither the ability to carry out the threat nor a belief by the persons threatened that it will be carried out is an essential element of ] the crime. Rather, the harm sought to be prevent[1181] ed by the statute is the psychological distress that follows from an invasion of another’s sense of personal security.

In the Interest of B.R., supra (internal quotations and citations omitted). Accordingly, appellant’s sufficiency of the evidence challenge fails.

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In re J.C., 751 A.2d 1178, 2000 Pa. Super. 137, 2000 Pa. Super. LEXIS 630 (Pa. Ct. App. 2000).

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