In re Juvenile "A"

70 Pa. D. & C.2d 160, 1975 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 368
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Bucks County
DecidedMarch 31, 1975
Docketno. 622
StatusPublished

This text of 70 Pa. D. & C.2d 160 (In re Juvenile "A") is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Bucks County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Juvenile "A", 70 Pa. D. & C.2d 160, 1975 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 368 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1975).

Opinion

GARB, J.,

This is a matter in the Juvenile Division of the Court of Common Pleas of this county wherein the juvenile has moved to dismiss the petition against him and originally asserted as grounds therefor the double jeopardy provisions of the United States and Pennsylvania Constitutions and also the application of Commonwealth v. Campana, 452 Pa. 233, 304 A. 2d 432 (1973) and 455 Pa. 622, 314 A. 2d 854 (1974). The [161]*161matter has been argued before the court en banc and counsel for the juvenile has briefed and argued only his assertion arising from the effects of the two Campana decisions. Therefore, we assume that the juvenile’s contention arising solely out of the double jeopardy provisions are abandoned, and he so concedes.

On June 24, 1974, the juvenile was apprehended by a police officer of the Township of Lower Southampton, Bucks County, Pa., operating a motor vehicle. As a result of that apprehension, on June 30, 1974, a petition was filed in Juvenile Court alleging that he had committed an act of delinquency arising from the alleged operation of a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor. Prior thereto three citations were issued by the district justice of the peace charging the juvenile with reckless driving, operating on a junior operator’s license after midnight and failing to have his operator’s license in his possession at a time when he was operating a motor vehicle. These charges arose out of the same occurrence from which the alleged act of delinquency contained in the petition before the juvenile court arose. The juvenile entered a plea of guilty to the three summary offenses contained in the three citations and paid the fine and costs therefrom on June 29, 1974. Therefore, he was effectively convicted of these three summary offenses before the district justice of the peace. It is the contention of the juvenile that by virtue of these convictions further proceedings against him before the juvenile court on the petition now before us arising out of the same occurrence are barred by the effect of the two Campana decisions.

The first Campana decision held essentially that [162]*162where more than one prosecution arises out of the same occurrence, activity or adventure, all should be heard and determined in the same tribunal even though some maybe indictable and some summary offenses. Under those circumstances, it was held that the court of record may hear and determine all of the matters with which defendant is charged although they may not all, necessarily, be submitted to the jury. See Commonwealth v. Campana, 452 Pa. 233, 304 A. 2d 432 (1973). It seems clear, from a reading of this decision alone, that the holding was based upon the double jeopardy provisions of the United States Constitution as those provisions had been construed by the United States Supreme Court in Benton v. Maryland, 395 U.S. 784, 89 S. Ct. 2056, 23 L. Ed. 2d 707 (1969); North Carolina v. Pearce, 395 U.S. 711, 89 S. Ct. 2072, 23 L. Ed. 2d 656 (1969); Waller v. Florida, 397 U.S. 387, 90 S. Ct. 1184, 25 L. Ed. 2d 435 (1970); Ashe v. Swenson, 397 U.S. 436, 90 S. Ct. 1189, 25 L. Ed. 2d 469 (1970) and our Superior Court in Commonwealth v. DeVaughn, 221 Pa. Superior Ct. 410, allocatur refused 292 A. 2d 444 (1972).

A petition for certiorari was filed with the United States Supreme Court appealing from Commonwealth v. Campana, supra, which was granted on October 9, 1973. The Supreme Court of the United States vacated the Pennsylvania Supreme Court judgment and remanded the case to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to consider whether the judgments were based on Federal or State grounds. See Pennsylvania v. Campana, 414 U.S. 808, 94 S. Ct. 73, 38 L. Ed. 2d 44 (1973). Thereafter, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court handed down a per curiam addendum opinion reaffirming the holding of Commonwealth v. Campana, supra, but declar[163]*163ing that the holding was based upon the court’s supervisory powers over State criminal proceedings rather than upon Federal double jeopardy standards. See Commonwealth v. Campana, 455 Pa. 622, 314 A. 2d 854 (1974). Therefore, although it is now clear that the compulsory joinder mandate is one which comes to us by virtue of the Supreme Court’s supervisory and administrative authority under article 5 , section 10 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, by virtue of the juxtaposition of the first with the second Campana opinion we conclude that the standards as enunciated in the first Campana opinion are those which trigger the effectuation of the doctrine therein espoused: Commonwealth v. John Doe, 26 Bucks 59 (1974).

Although the foregoing appears to be abundantly clear when applied to adult offenders, we believe that these standards impose a practical impossibility of application to a juvenile. By virtue of the terms of section 2 of the Juvenile Act of December 6,1972, P.L. 1464(No. 333), UPS §§50-101, etseq., it is provided that a child, as defined in the act, means an individual who is under the age of 18 years. A delinquent act is defined as one designated a crime under the law of this State or of another State if the act occurred in that State, or under Federal law, or under local ordinances. It is specifically provided that a delinquent act does not include summary offenses unless the child fails to pay a fine levied thereunder.

Section 11 of the act, 11 PS §50-308, providing the manner in which a child may be taken into custody and section 13, 11 PS §50-310, provides that, upon taking a child into custody, the person so doing, with all reasonable speed and without first taking the child anywhere else, shall notify the parent, [164]*164guardian or other custodian of the child of his apprehension and his whereabouts, release the child to his parent, guardian or other custodian upon their promise to bring the child before the court when requested by the court, unless his detention or shelter care is warranted, or bring the child before the court or deliver him to a detention or shelter care facility designated by the court, or to a medical facility if the child is believed to suffer from a serious physical condition or illness.1 Court is defined in section 2 of the act, 11 PS §50-102, as a court of common pleas of the county.

A reading of these sections, together with the definition of a child and of a delinquent act as contained in section 2 of the act leads us to conclude that a district justice of the peace lacks any jurisdiction over a child who, it is alleged, committed an act of delinquency. By the same token, summary offenses are specifically excluded from the definition of delinquent act in section 2 of the Juvenile Act and therefore the juvenile court lacks jurisdiction over the juvenile for summary offenses. Therefore, we conclude that the relationship of the district justice of the peace and of the juvenile court is one of mutual exclusivity regarding alleged delinquent acts as opposed to alleged summary offenses. Therefore, we conclude that the mandates of the Campana decision cannot be applied to juveniles, because summary offenses cannot be tried before the same tribunal as can alleged acts of delinquency.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

North Carolina v. Pearce
395 U.S. 711 (Supreme Court, 1969)
Benton v. Maryland
395 U.S. 784 (Supreme Court, 1969)
Waller v. Florida
397 U.S. 387 (Supreme Court, 1970)
Ashe v. Swenson
397 U.S. 436 (Supreme Court, 1970)
Commonwealth v. Campana
304 A.2d 432 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1973)
Commonwealth v. DeVaughn
292 A.2d 444 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1972)
Commonwealth v. Campana
314 A.2d 854 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1974)
Pennsylvania v. Campana
414 U.S. 808 (Supreme Court, 1973)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
70 Pa. D. & C.2d 160, 1975 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 368, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-juvenile-a-pactcomplbucks-1975.