Opinion ID: 1998711
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: validity of the subpoena

Text: The trial court also concluded that the identification evidence must be suppressed as the tainted fruit of a sham subpoena. The trial court reasoned as follows: At the evidentiary hearing, the prosecutor testified that he had not subpoenaed the defendant to appear at Banks' sentencing for the purpose of parading him before any witnesses (N.T. 5/15/86, p. 77). He did, however, admit that defendant was not subpoenaed to appear at the sentencing solely for the purpose of testifying against Banks. If the defendant did not cooperate with the prosecution by admitting his involvement in the murder and testifying against Banks, the prosecutor hoped that defendant's presence in the courtroom would provide sufficient psychological pressure to secure Banks' cooperation against defendant or defendant's cooperation against the third co-conspirator (N.T. 5/15/86, pp. 76-77, 88, 94). The prosecutor admitted that the plan worked. At the hearing, he stated, `It was Banks seeing Melson that, in my opinion, got him to cooperate' (N.T. 5/15/86, p. 94). Based on the testimony adduced at the evidentiary hearing, we are satisfied that the process used to compel defendant's appearance at Banks' sentencing was not a true subpoena. In United States v. Caputo, 633 F.Supp. 1479 (E.D.Pa. 1986), the Court noted the effect of a sham subpoena on the integrity of the judicial process: The government properly may use a host of ploys in furtherance of an undercover investigation, but issuance of a spurious order of Court obviously exceeds the bounds of propriety. It reflects upon the integrity of the judicial process; when the government issues a sham subpoena, and it becomes known that it is a sham, it may appear that the Court has improperly participated in the government's investigation. Such an appearance could impair the public's confidence in the Court's role as an impartial adjudicator. Id. at 1492 (footnotes omitted). Here, the prosecutor's conduct in issuing the `subpoena' was improper and amounted to prosecutorial misconduct. (Trial Ct.Op. at 15-17). (Emphasis in original). I cannot agree.
The trial court's reliance upon United States v. Caputo, supra , is misplaced. First, Caputo is materially distinguishable on its facts. The sham subpoena in Caputo was a sham in that it was issued to the pseudonymous identity of an undercover FBI agent rather than his true identity, in order to preserve his cover. No such sham exists in this case. Moreover, the excerpt from the Caputo decision relied upon by the trial court was expressly disapproved by the Third Circuit of Appeals when Caputo was reversed ( sub. nom. ) in United States v. Martino, 825 F.2d 754, 762 (3rd Cir. 1987).
Appellee contended in the trial court that the prosecutor had used the subpoena for the sole purpose of parading appellee before a potential witness, i.e. Mrs. Markowitz. Appellee argued in support of this contention that the pretextual nature of the subpoena was demonstrated by the fact that the prosecutor had no reasonable expectation that appellee would agree to testify at Banks' sentencing, and that even if he testified as desired, such testimony would have been merely cumulative of testimony available from other more cooperative witnesses. The trial court, however, found that the prosecution had not contrived appellee's encounter with Mrs. Markowitz, thus, specifically rejecting that claim. (Trial Ct.Op. at 8).
Though the trial court found the subpoena to be a sham, this decision was not based upon a finding that the sole or even dominant purpose of the subpoena was improper. Rather, the trial court's characterization of the subpoena as a sham was based upon the fact that the prosecutor's purpose for having a subpoena issued to appellee was not solely to secure appellee's testimony at Banks' sentencing. (Trial Ct.Op. at 16). The trial court ruled, essentially, that the mere presence of an ulterior motive or a collateral purpose for the issuance of an otherwise valid subpoena renders the subpoena a sham. I cannot agree. Federal courts have consistently held that prosecutorial misconduct is established when it is established that the sole or dominant purpose for the issuance of a subpoena is improper. See Payden v. United States, 767 F.2d 26 (2nd Cir. 1985); United States v. Moss, 756 F.2d 329 (4th Cir. 1985); see also Gershman, Prosecutorial Misconduct, § 3.2 (1987) (collecting cases). However, under the sole or dominant purpose test, so long as a legitimate purpose exists for issuance of the subpoena, the prosecution is generally permitted to reap the collateral benefits from a subpoena issued with dual motives. See In re Grand Jury Proceedings (Appeal of Johanson), 632 F.2d 1033 (3rd Cir. 1980); Gershman, supra at § 3.2(d)(3) (collecting cases). There is scant caselaw in Pennsylvania regarding the application of the sole or dominant purpose test to claims of prosecutorial abuse of the subpoena process. In In re Miller, ___ Pa.Cmwlth. ___, 384 A.2d 599 (1978), the Commonwealth Court stated: The issue before the Court in the above two cases, which by agreement of the parties were consolidated for hearing and disposition, is whether the Pennsylvania Crime Commission (Commission) has abused its proper investigating authority by here using its subpoena power to supply information to the District Attorney of Delaware County to implement the prosecution of respondents. The able attorneys for respondents do not question the relevance of the information sought but they base their case on what they consider to be a showing that the direct purpose is to develop for the District Attorney a criminal case against respondents. We do not believe the respondents have established their cases. The Commission's one witness testified as to the proper purpose and denied any association with the District Attorney in regard to supplying evidence to prosecute respondents. The respondents' witnesses, including a former director of the Commission and a former Assistant District Attorney of Delaware County, both testified that there had been no communications between the District Attorney's Office and the Commission regarding developing evidence to prosecute respondents. Respondents would have us draw an inference from the fact that upwards of 20 subpoenas have been enforced by this Court on the request of the Crime Commission all of which dealt with the relationship the subpoenaed witnesses had with Frank Miller  that the sole or primary purpose was to develop a criminal case against Frank Miller. Especially in view of the direct and positive evidence to the contrary in respondents' own case, no such inference can be drawn. 384 A.2d at 600. Because Miller failed to establish the factual basis for his claim, i.e. that the Crime Commission's sole or dominant purpose for issuing the subpoenas was to develop a criminal case against him, the Commonwealth Court had no occasion to determine whether the sole or dominant (primary) purpose test applied in Pennsylvania. Recently, in Commonwealth v. Lang, 517 Pa. 390, 537 A.2d 1361 (1988), our Supreme Court stated: We find no merit in Lang's assertions that federal caselaw requires us to hold that the procedures which we approve today are in fact unconstitutional [. . . .] Furthermore, statements in United States v. Moss, 756 F.2d 329, 332 (4th Cir. 1985) and In Re Grand Jury Proceedings (Appeal of Johanson), 632 F.2d 1033, 1040 (3d Cir., 1980), which forbid the continuance of grand jury investigations for the sole or dominant purpose of obtaining evidence against a defendant once he is indicted, we regard as limited to the federal schema and as inappropriate to Pennsylvania. 517 Pa. at 401 n. 3, 537 A.2d at 1366 n. 3. I do not read this statement to be a rejection of the sole or dominant purpose test. Rather, our Supreme Court's disapproval of Moss and Johanson appears to be addressed solely to the issue of whether the use of a grand jury investigation to acquire evidence to support a pending indictment is improper, and does not appear to address the issue of whether prosecutorial misconduct would be established by evidence that the sole or dominant purpose for the issuance of a subpoena was improper in some other sense. See In re Investigating Grand Jury of Chester County (Petition of Lees), 518 Pa. 485, 488 n. 4, 544 A.2d 924, 924 n. 4 (1988). Cf. Agrella v. Rivkind, 404 So.2d 1113 (Fla.App. 1981) (the recognized limits on use of federal grand jury proceedings to support pending indictments do not apply to state grand jury proceedings). The question of whether the sole or dominant purpose test is to be adopted as the gauge for reviewing claims of prosecutorial abuse of the subpoena process in this Commonwealth thus remains a question of first impression. Upon review of the federal authorities, I find that correctly applied, the sole or dominant purpose test is an appropriate gauge for determining whether corrective action is required to sanction and deter prosecutorial abuses of the subpoena process. I note, however, that there is an important difference between the lawful anticipation of a legitimate collateral benefit and an abuse of the subpoena process solely or dominantly for improper purposes. When the sole or dominant purpose of a subpoena is to harass generally or to encroach upon an individual's constitutional rights, prosecutorial misconduct is established. See e.g. United States v. Westinghouse, 788 F.2d 164, 166-67 (3rd Cir. 1986) (to harass generally); Timson v. Weiner, 395 F.Supp. 1344, 1349 (S.D.Ohio 1975) (to deny First Amendment rights); Williams v. District Court, 700 P.2d 549, 554 (Colo. 1985) (to disqualify opposing counsel by calling him as a witness, when no necessity for the attorney's testimony exists); accord United States v. Nechy, 827 F.2d 1161, 1167 (7th Cir. 1987). To constitute misconduct, however, the sole or dominant purpose of the subpoena must be improper. In this case, there was a legitimate purpose to subpoena appellee. The nature and circumstances of the offense were valid concerns at Banks' sentencing hearing; hence, the Commonwealth was entitled to subpoena witnesses to testify concerning the nature and circumstances of the offense. The police investigation had uncovered sufficient evidence to lead the prosecutor to reasonably believe appellee might have been Banks' co-conspirator and therefore that appellee might have relevant information regarding the nature and circumstances of the offense. Appellee's nickname was the same as that of the co-conspirator, and appellee was known to have access to the type of car used by the co-conspirator. Moreover, when interviewed by the police, appellee acknowledged that he knew Banks, but declined further discussion with the police until he spoke with his attorney. Appellee did not deny knowledge of or participation in the crime at that interview. Though it was certainly possible that appellee might invoke his Fifth Amendment rights when called to testify, [8] the possibility that he might possess and produce evidence relevant to the sentencing proceeding is nonetheless apparent. Hence, the prosecution had a legitimate basis to subpoena appellee. The prosecutor in this case candidly admitted that he anticipated and desired a collateral benefit to be derived from the subpoena issued to appellee, i.e. that the impact on Banks or appellee of their discovery that the prosecutor had drawn the connection between them might cause either or both to decide to cooperate with the prosecution in the hope of gaining leniency at sentencing. Contrary to the majority's assertion, the prosecutor did not admit or even suggest that he would not have called appellee to testify if Banks had not decided to cooperate. Rather, the prosecutor repeatedly stated that appellee's prior statements made the prosecutor hopeful that when zero hour arrived appellee would choose to cooperate. ( See N.T. 5/15/86 at 76-78, 84-85, 89-90). The most that could accurately be said in this respect was that the prosecutor conceded hopeful optimism that one of the two of them would decide to cooperate, and that if Banks cooperated then appellee's testimony would not be needed. With respect to the reasonableness of the prosecutor's hope that appellee might provide relevant testimony at Banks' sentencing hearing, it should be noted that Banks' cooperation was triggered by his belief that appellee was present to give relevant testimony against him at his sentencing hearing. Thus, Banks apparently concurred in the prosecutor's accessment of appellee's potential for cooperation with the prosecution. I find nothing improper per se about confronting a suspect with potentially inculpatory facts or evidence. To the contrary, the decision of when and how to confront a suspect with such facts or evidence is appropriately a matter of police and prosecutorial discretion and tactics. Moreover, so long as a legitimate basis exists to subpoena the suspect as a witness in a proceeding related to the crime of which he is suspected, I find nothing improper about the use of such a court proceeding to heighten the dramatic and psychological effect of such a confrontation. I perceive this to be a legitimate exercise of sound tactics, rather than an abuse of the subpoena process. I note that unconstitutional coercion ( e.g. the third degree) is highly unlikely to occur in such a setting. Finally, I note that as long as a legitimate purpose for issuing a subpoena exists, I would find that the intensity of a prosecutor's desire for a legitimate collateral benefit cannot render the subpoena invalid as an abuse of process. It is only when the sole or dominant purpose is improper that an abuse of the subpoena process is established.
Assuming, arguendo, that the use of the subpoena to compel appellee's attendance at Banks' sentencing hearing was improper, it does not follow that Mrs. Markowitz's fortuitous, wholly unplanned, and unanticipated identification of appellee must or should be suppressed. The exclusionary rule generally prohibits the use of physical or testimonial evidence derived as the direct and proximate result of unconstitutional conduct. See Murray v. United States, ___ U.S. ___, ___, 108 S.Ct. 2529, 2533, 101 L.Ed.2d 472, 480 (1988). However, from its announcement in Boyd v. United States, 116 U.S. 616, 6 S.Ct. 524, 29 L.Ed. 746 (1886), and Weeks v. United States, 232 U.S. 383, 34 S.Ct. 341, 58 L.Ed. 652 (1914), to the present date, the exclusionary rule has remained a lightening rod for heated controversy. Though the United States Supreme Court has declined repeated invitations to abandon the exclusionary rule, it has acknowledged the high societal cost involved in the application of the rule, and has limited its application to cases where its general deterrent effects were perceived to outweigh its negative effects on the truth determining process. See Murray v. United States, supra ; California v. Greenwood, 486 U.S. 35, ___, 108 S.Ct. 1625, 1631, 100 L.Ed.2d 30, 39-40 (1988); Illinois v. Krull, 480 U.S. 340, 347-51, 107 S.Ct. 1160, 1165-68, 94 L.Ed.2d 364, 373-77 (1987); United States v. Leon, 468 U.S. 897, 104 S.Ct. 3405, 82 L.Ed.2d 677 (1984) ( passim ), reh den. 468 U.S. 1250, 105 S.Ct. 52, 82 L.Ed.2d 942 (1984); United States v. Havens, 446 U.S. 620, 624-28, 100 S.Ct. 1912, 1915-17, 64 L.Ed.2d 559, 564-66 (1980); United States v. Ceccolini, 435 U.S. 268, 98 S.Ct. 1054, 55 L.Ed.2d 268 (1978) ( passim ); Stone v. Powell, 428 U.S. 465, 482-96, 96 S.Ct. 3037, 3046-53, 49 L.Ed.2d 1067, 1080-88 (1976); United States v. Janis, 428 U.S. 433, 443-60, 96 S.Ct. 3021, 3026-35, 49 L.Ed.2d 1046, 1054-64 (1976); United States v. Calandra, 414 U.S. 338, 94 S.Ct. 613, 38 L.Ed.2d 561 (1974) ( passim ). Whether and to what extent there may be a state exclusionary rule in Pennsylvania arising from the Pennsylvania Constitution is uncertain in Pennsylvania. See Commonwealth v. Montgomery, 513 Pa. 138, 142-43, 518 A.2d 1197, 1199 (1986); Commonwealth v. Shaeffer, 370 Pa.Super. 179, 266-69, 536 A.2d 354, 398-400 (1988) (Kelly, J., dissenting). In light of our Supreme Court's resolute resistance to the federal exclusionary rule prior to Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643, 81 S.Ct. 1684, 6 L.Ed.2d 1081 (1961), I find that recognition and application of an independent state exclusionary rule by this Court would be inappropriate absent a clear command by our Supreme Court. See Commonwealth v. Shaeffer, supra, 370 Pa.Super. at 268, 536 A.2d at 399 (discussing the prospect of a state constitutional exclusionary rule). I note that our Supreme Court has applied the federal exclusionary rule cautiously. In Commonwealth v. Williams, 454 Pa. 368, 312 A.2d 597 (1973), they explained: a prophylactic exclusionary rule is applied only in extreme cases where all other attempts to secure compliance have proven unsuccessful. See generally Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643, 651-52, 81 S.Ct. 1684 [1689] 6 L.Ed.2d 1081 (1961). In this area there has been no showing of widespread flagrant disregard to justify formulation of such a rule at this time. 454 Pa. at 372, 312 A.2d at 600. The same may be said here. All that appears from this record is that a single isolated occurrence of an arguable abuse of the subpoena process by a prosecutor resulted in a wholly fortuitous and unanticipated identification of appellee. Even if I were to assume that the subpoena process had been abused, setting appellee free would not appear to be necessary to prevent use of the subpoena process for such purposes in the future. The cost of applying an exclusionary rule here would greatly exceed any benefit to be anticipated. Moreover, the evidence challenged here is an eyewitness identification of the appellee. Our Supreme Court has held that an illegal arrest of a defendant which merely provided the means for a confrontation more promptly than might otherwise have occurred did not require suppression of the resulting identification. See Commonwealth v. Garvin, 448 Pa. 258, 293 A.2d 33 (1972); see also Commonwealth v. Ryan, 253 Pa.Super. 92, 384 A.2d 1243 (1978). The United States Supreme Court has likewise expressed reluctance to suppress identification evidence based upon the illegality of the arrest which precipitated the identification. United States v. Crews, 445 U.S. 463, 100 S.Ct. 1244, 63 L.Ed.2d 537 (1980); cf. United States v. Ceccolini, supra (deterrent effects are lesser, and societal costs are greater when evidence of live witnesses is involved). I do not find that the fortuitous, unplanned, and unanticipated identification of appellee by Mrs. Markowitz resulting from the alleged abuse of the subpoena process by the prosecutor is materially distinguishable from the situations in Garvin, Ryan, and Crews, or that a different result should obtain.
Based upon the foregoing, I conclude that the trial court and the majority herein err in characterizing the subpoena as a sham, and in concluding that the identification evidence of Mrs. Markowitz was subject to suppression as the tainted fruit of a sham subpoena. As appellee failed to establish the underlying merit of his suppression claim in this respect, counsel cannot be deemed ineffective. Commonwealth v. Carelli, supra ; Kitrell v. Dakota, supra .