Court Opinion

ID: 9636000
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 14:11:54.588442+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:09:40.004600
License: Public Domain

Dissenting Opinion by
Hoffman, J.:
This appeal stems from the refusal of the court below to hold the appellee in contempt following her refusal to submit to a spectrograph or voice print test.
On April 21, 1972, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office appeared before the Honorable Lois G. Forer and requested that the appellee, Evelyn Guardiani, be held in contempt of court for failing to comply with a validly issued search warrant. Under the terms of the warrant, the appellee was ordered to undergo a spectrograph test. Judge Forer refused to hold the appellee in contempt and ruled that such a test was not the proper subject matter for a search warrant. Following this decision, the Commonwealth appealed to this court.
*441On July 10, 1973, the Commonwealth requested leave of this court to withdraw its appeal conceding the correctness of the lower court’s ruling. This concession leaves us without a case in controversy and renders any decision an advisory opinion. A petition to withdraw an appeal should be granted absent extraordinary circumstances requiring that this court decide an issue. No such circumstances appear herein. Furthermore, the refusal to permit the withdrawal prevented the Commonwealth from proceeding immediately to trial. Since the prompt disposition of criminal matters promotes the fair administration of justice, an unnecessary delay should be avoided wherever possible.
Accordingly, the Commonwealth should have been permitted to withdraw its appeal.
Spaulding and Cercone, JJ., join in this dissenting opinion.