Court Opinion

ID: 9697482
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 19:18:01.143655+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:19:37.387839
License: Public Domain

BECK, Judge,
concurring and dissenting:
While I agree with the majority’s determination that Appellant’s case could properly be transferred under Section 6355 of the Juvenile Act (“Act”), 42 Pa.C.S. § 6355, to an “adult” court, I disagree with the majority’s view that Appellant’s constitutional right to a fair trial as an “adult” was adequately protected in this instance where the trial court took judicial notice of the factual findings of the transfer hearing judge and incorporated same into its evaluation of Appellant’s guilt.
A transfer hearing pursuant to the Act does not possess all the safeguards of an “adult” court trial. Although the Act does guarantee, inter alia, the right to counsel (42 Pa.C.S. § 6337), the right to cross-examine witnesses (42 Pa.C.S. § 6338),1 and the right against self-incrimination (42 Pa.C.S. § 6338), the Act specifically denies the right to a jury. “Hearings under the [Act] shall be conducted by the court without a jury, in an informal but orderly manner .. .. ” Section 6336 of the Act, 42 Pa.C.S. § 6336 (emphasis added). See McKeiver v. Pennsylvania, 403 U.S. 528, 91 S.Ct. 1976, 29 L.Ed.2d 647 (1971); Commonwealth v. McNaughton, 252 Pa.Super.Ct. 302, 381 A.2d 929 (1977). *11The purpose of the hearing is for the Commonwealth to make a prima facie case not prove all the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Additionally, the defendant at a prima facie hearing does not expect to develop fully whatever defense he may have.
Moreover, the purpose and scope of a transfer hearing differ markedly from those of a criminal court trial. Whereas a criminal court trial addresses the merits of both the Commonwealth’s and the accused’s positions, Section 6355(a) of the Act states that “[a]fter a petition has been filed alleging delinquency based on conduct which is designated a crime . . ., the court before hearing the petition on its merits may rule that [the Act] is not applicable . . . and transfer the offense ... to ... a judge of the court assigned to conduct criminal proceedings . . . . ” (Emphasis added.) A transfer must be supported by, inter alia, a finding “that there is a prima facie case that the child committed the delinquent act alleged.” 42 Pa.C.S. § 6355(a)(4)(i) (emphasis added).2
The transfer hearing did not offer Appellant the opportunity to trial by jury. The standard of proof of the crime at the transfer hearing was not beyond a reasonable doubt but was limited to the establishment of a prima facie case. I therefore would hold that the trial court’s adoption of the factual findings of the transfer hearing judge denied Appellant his basic constitutional right to a fair trial including his right to a jury trial and to proof of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
I would accordingly reverse and remand for a new trial not inconsistent with this view.

. Juveniles also have the right to confront their accusers. McKeiver v. Pennsylvania, 403 U.S. 528, 91 S.Ct. 1976, 29 L.Ed.2d 647 (1971).

. Although Section 6341 of the Act, 42 Pa.C.S. § 6341, provides that a finding of delinquency must be based “on proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the child committed the acts by reason of which he is alleged to be delinquent,” Section 6355 which governs transfers to “adult” court, does not contain a similar prerequisite for a finding of inapplicability of the Juvenile Act but merely requires proof of a prima facie case in order to effectuate a transfer to “adult” court.