Opinion ID: 1992362
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: waiver of mandatory restitution

Text: Illegality of sentence going to the jurisdiction or authority of the court cannot be waived. See Commonwealth v. Wallace, 368 Pa.Super. 255, 533 A.2d 1051 (1987); Commonwealth v. Hartz, supra . A sentence which fails to impose a statutorily mandated penalty is illegal and beyond the authority of the court to impose. Commonwealth v. Lee, supra . The discussion in Part I of this opinion establishes that the trial court is under a legal obligation to impose an order of restitution with respect to any moneys fraudulently obtained. Hence, a sentence which failed to order such restitution was illegal, and such illegality could not be waived by the Commonwealth. Other mandatory sentence provisions have been construed to vest discretion in the prosecutor as to whether or not to invoke the statute based upon the existence of a provision which requires notice by the prosecutor of the Commonwealth's intent to seek application of the statute. See Commonwealth v. Pittman, 515 Pa. 272, 528 A.2d 138 (1987); see also Commonwealth v. Harton, 518 Pa. 69, 540 A.2d 932 (1988). Section 481(c) contains no such notice provision. Rather, its mandatory restitution provision must by its unqualified terms be deemed to be automatically applicable; there is no indication of any intent to vest discretion in the prosecutor to elect to waive its application. Hence, we do not find restitution to have been waived or waivable in the instant case.