Case Name: COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellant, v. Jewel ROBERTS, Appellee
Court: Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
Jurisdiction: Pennsylvania
Decision Date: 1979-03-26
Citations: 484 Pa. 500
Docket Number: No. 588
Parties: COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellant, v. Jewel ROBERTS, Appellee.
Judges: Before EAGEN, C. J., and O’BRIEN, ROBERTS, NIX, MANDERINO and LARSEN, JJ.
Reporter: Pennsylvania State Reports
Volume: 484
Pages: 500–508

Head Matter:
399 A.2d 404
COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellant, v. Jewel ROBERTS, Appellee.
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
Argued Oct. 20, 1978.
Decided March 26, 1979.
Robert C. Houpt, Joan D. Lasensky, Asst. Dist. Attys., for appellant.
William H. Mitman, Jr., West Chester, for appellee.
Before EAGEN, C. J., and O’BRIEN, ROBERTS, NIX, MANDERINO and LARSEN, JJ.

Opinion:
OPINION OF THE COURT
PER CURIAM:
Appellee, Jewel Roberts, was indicted in two separate bills of indictment arising from the robbery and strangulation death of Ray E. Lowe. In the first bill, she was charged with five specific counts: murder in the first degree, murder in the second degree, murder in the third degree, voluntary manslaughter, and involuntary manslaughter. The second bill of indictment charged appellee with burglary and conspiracy. A jury trial followed, and verdicts of not guilty were returned on the charges of murder in the first degree, murder in the third degree, voluntary manslaughter, and involuntary manslaughter. The jury found appellee guilty of burglary and conspiracy. Following several reports from the foreman that the jury was hopelessly deadlocked, a mistrial was granted at appellee's request as to the charge of murder in the second degree. When moving for a mistrial, appellant's trial counsel specifically reserved the right to subsequently argue that the not guilty verdicts operated to bar reprosecution on the charge of murder in the second degree. After notification that appellant intended to retry appellee on the charge of murder in the second degree, appellee petitioned the trial court to dismiss the charge. The court granted appellee's petition and quashed the indictment. Pursuant to the Appellate Court Jurisdiction Act of 1970, Act of July 31,1970, P.L. 673, No. 223 Art. II, § 202,17 P.S. § 211.202 (Supp.1978-79), the prosecution now appeals to us.
The trial court held that one who is acquitted of lesser degrees of criminal homicide, namely murder in the third degree, voluntary manslaughter, and involuntary manslaughter, cannot be retried on a charge of second degree murder arising from the same factual situation. For the reasons that follow, we agree that appellee cannot be retried and therefore affirm the order of the trial court dismissing the indictment.
Rule 1120(d) of the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure states:
"If there are two or more counts in the information or indictment, the jury may report a verdict or verdicts with respect to those counts upon which it has agreed, and the judge shall receive and record all such verdicts. If the jury cannot agree with respect to all the counts in the information or indictment if those counts to which it has agreed opérate as an acquittal of lesser or greater included offenses to which they cannot agree, these latter counts shall be dismissed. When the counts in the information or indictment upon which the jury cannot agree are not included offenses of the counts in the information or indictment upon which it has agreed, the defendant or defendants may be retried on those counts in the information or indictment. (Emphasis added.)
The first bill of indictment entered against appellee specifically accused her of five counts of criminal homicide. The jury returned verdicts in four of those counts, and the judge received and recorded these verdicts; the jury could not agree with respect to the count charging murder in the second degree. Therefore, Rule 1120(d), requires dismissal of the count charging murder in the second degree if murder in the second degree is a lesser and/or greater included offense of either murder in the first degree, murder in the third degree, voluntary manslaughter, or involuntary manslaughter. That it is is now beyond question. Commonwealth v. Garcia, 474 Pa. 449, 378 A.2d 1199 (1977); Commonwealth v. Polimeni, 474 Pa. 430, 378 A.2d 1189 (1977). See also, Commonwealth v. Thatcher, 364 Pa. 326, 71 A.2d 796 (1950) (holding that the Act of March 31, 1860, P.L. 427, § 51, 19 P.S. § 831 prohibits retrial on a charge of murder based on the same homicide of which one has been acquitted of involuntary manslaughter.) The trial court thus correctly ordered the charge of murder in the second degree dismissed. Commonwealth ex rel. Light v. Cavell, 422 Pa. 215, 220 A.2d 883 (1966); Commonwealth v. Frazier, 420 Pa. 209, 216 A.2d 337 (1966). See also, Commonwealth v. Campana, 452 Pa. 233, 304 A.2d 432 (1973); Commonwealth ex rel. Robinson v. Myers, 427 Pa. 104, 233 A.2d 220 (1967).
The order of the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County dismissing the charges against appellee is affirmed.
NIX, J., filed a dissenting opinion in which LARSEN, J., joined.
POMEROY, former J., did not participate in the consideration or decision of this case.