Court Opinion

ID: 9838213
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-05 17:08:10.39971+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:35:51.327879
License: Public Domain

J-S24005-23

NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT OP 65.37

  COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA                 :   IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
                                               :        PENNSYLVANIA
                                               :
                v.                             :
                                               :
                                               :
  JUAN JESUS ROSARIO                           :
                                               :
                       Appellant               :   No. 1726 MDA 2022

        Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence Entered June 30, 2020
    In the Court of Common Pleas of Luzerne County Criminal Division at
                      No(s): CP-40-CR-0002957-2019

BEFORE:      BENDER, P.J.E., LAZARUS, J., and STEVENS, P.J.E.*

MEMORANDUM BY BENDER, P.J.E.:                       FILED SEPTEMBER 5, 2023

       Appellant, Juan Jesus Rosario, appeals nunc pro tunc from the judgment

of sentence of 72 to 180 months’ incarceration, imposed after he pled guilty

to one count of aggravated assault, 18 Pa.C.S. § 2702(a)(1).           On appeal,

Appellant seeks to challenge the trial court’s application of the Deadly Weapon

Enhancement (DWE) to his sentence, despite that Appellant agreed to the

application of that sentencing enhancement as part of his guilty plea.

Additionally, Appellant’s counsel, Matthew P. Kelly, Esq., seeks to withdraw

his representation of Appellant pursuant to Anders v. California, 386 U.S.

738 (1967), and Commonwealth v. Santiago, 978 A.2d 349 (Pa. 2009).

After careful review, we affirm Appellant’s judgment of sentence and grant

counsel’s petition to withdraw.

____________________________________________

* Former Justice specially assigned to the Superior Court.
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      We need not set forth a detailed recitation of the facts underlying

Appellant’s conviction.   We only note that Appellant’s aggravated assault

offense “resulted from [his] participation in the robbery and beating of an

individual … on July 11, 2014[,]” during which Appellant “used a pool cue stick

to strike the victim numerous times.” Trial Court Opinion (TCO), 2/17/23, at

1 (unnumbered). Appellant pled guilty on February 10, 2020. On June 30,

2020, he was sentenced to the aggregate term set forth supra. Appellant filed

a timely post-sentence motion, which was denied. Appellant did not file a

timely direct appeal, but his appellate rights were subsequently reinstated

after he sought relief via the Post Conviction Relief Act, 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 9541-

9546. Appellant then timely filed this nunc pro tunc appeal, and he complied

with the trial court’s order to file a Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b) concise statement of

errors complained of on appeal, preserving the following issue for our review

as set forth in Attorney Kelly’s Anders brief:

      1. Whether the trial court abused its discretion in applying the
      [DWE] in sentencing [Appellant].

Anders Brief at 1; see also Rule 1925(b) Statement, 1/25/23, at 1 (single

page).

      On April 3, 2023, Attorney Kelly filed with this Court a petition to

withdraw from representing Appellant. That same day, counsel also filed an

Anders brief, concluding that Appellant’s sentencing issue is frivolous, and

that he has no other, non-frivolous issues he could pursue herein.

Accordingly,

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      this Court must first pass upon counsel’s petition to withdraw
      before reviewing the merits of the underlying issues presented by
      [the appellant]. Commonwealth v. Goodwin, 928 A.2d 287,
      290 (Pa. Super. 2007) (en banc).

      Prior to withdrawing as counsel on a direct appeal under Anders,
      counsel must file a brief that meets the requirements established
      by our Supreme Court in Santiago. The brief must:

         (1) provide a summary of the procedural history and facts,
         with citations to the record;

         (2) refer to anything in the record that counsel believes
         arguably supports the appeal;

         (3) set forth counsel’s conclusion that the appeal is
         frivolous; and

         (4) state counsel’s reasons for concluding that the appeal is
         frivolous. Counsel should articulate the relevant facts of
         record, controlling case law, and/or statutes on point that
         have led to the conclusion that the appeal is frivolous.

      Santiago, 978 A.2d at 361. Counsel also must provide a copy of
      the Anders brief to his client. Attending the brief must be a letter
      that advises the client of his right to: “(1) retain new counsel to
      pursue the appeal; (2) proceed pro se on appeal; or (3) raise any
      points that the appellant deems worthy of the court[’]s attention
      in addition to the points raised by counsel in the Anders brief.”
      Commonwealth v. Nischan, 928 A.2d 349, 353 (Pa. Super.
      2007), appeal denied, … 936 A.2d 40 ([Pa.] 2007).

Commonwealth v. Orellana, 86 A.3d 877, 879-80 (Pa. Super. 2014). After

determining that counsel has satisfied these technical requirements of Anders

and Santiago, this Court must then “conduct a simple review of the record to

ascertain if there appear[s] on its face to be arguably meritorious issues that

counsel, intentionally or not, missed or misstated.”      Commonwealth v.

Dempster, 187 A.3d 266, 272 (Pa. Super. 2018) (en banc).

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      In this case, Attorney Kelly’s Anders brief complies with the above-

stated requirements. Namely, he includes a summary of the relevant factual

and procedural history, he refers to portions of the record that could arguably

support Appellant’s claim, and he sets forth his conclusion that Appellant’s

appeal is frivolous.     He also explains his reasons for reaching that

determination, and supports his rationale with citations to the record and

pertinent legal authority. Attorney Kelly also states in his petition to withdraw

that he has supplied Appellant with a copy of the Anders brief. Additionally,

he provided this Court with a copy of a letter directed to Appellant in which

counsel   informed   Appellant   of   the   rights   enumerated   in   Nischan.

Accordingly, Attorney Kelly has complied with the technical requirements for

withdrawal.   We will now independently review the record to determine if

Appellant’s sentencing issue is frivolous, and to ascertain if there are any

other, non-frivolous issues he could pursue on appeal.

      Appellant contends that the trial court erred by applying the DWE

because a pool stick does not constitute a ‘deadly weapon’ as defined by the

Sentencing Code.     See 204 Pa. Code § 303.10(a)(2) (stating: “Except for

those sentenced pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S. § 1102.1 (relating to sentence of

persons under the age of 18 for murder, murder of an unborn child and murder

of a law enforcement officer), when the court determines that the offender

used a deadly weapon during the commission of the current conviction

offense, the court shall consider the DWE/Used Matrix (§ 303.17(b)).          An

offender has used a deadly weapon if any of the following were employed by

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the offender in a way that threatened or injured another individual: (i) Any

firearm, (as defined in 42 Pa.C.S. § 9712) whether loaded or unloaded, or

(ii) Any dangerous weapon (as defined in 18 Pa.C.S. § 913), or (iii) Any device,

implement, or instrumentality capable of producing death or serious bodily

injury.”). Appellant’s sentencing claim implicates the discretionary aspects of

his sentence.   See Commonwealth v. Kneller, 999 A.2d 608, 613 (Pa.

Super. 2010) (“This Court has held that a challenge to the application of the

[DWE] implicates the discretionary aspects of sentencing.”) (citing, inter alia,

Commonwealth        v.   Phillips,   946    A.2d   103   (Pa.   Super.   2008);

Commonwealth v. Diamond, 945 A.2d 252 (Pa. Super. 2008)).

         Challenges to the discretionary aspects of sentencing do not
         entitle an appellant to an appeal as of right. Prior to
         reaching the merits of a discretionary sentencing issue:

            [W]e conduct a four part analysis to determine: (1)
            whether [the] appellant has filed a timely notice of
            appeal, see Pa.R.A.P. 902 and 903; (2) whether the
            issue was properly preserved at sentencing or in a
            motion to reconsider and modify sentence, see
            Pa.R.Crim.P. 1410 [now Rule 720]; (3) whether [the]
            appellant’s brief has a fatal defect, Pa.R.A.P. 2119(f);
            and (4) whether there is a substantial question that
            the sentence appealed from is not appropriate under
            the Sentencing Code, 42 Pa.C.S.[] § 9781(b).

      Commonwealth v. Martin, … 611 A.2d 731, 735 ([Pa. Super.]
      1992) (most internal citations omitted).

      When appealing the discretionary aspects of a sentence, an
      appellant must invoke the appellate court’s jurisdiction by
      including in [her] brief a separate concise statement
      demonstrating that there is a substantial question as to the
      appropriateness of the sentence under the Sentencing Code.

                                      ***

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       The determination of what constitutes a substantial question must
       be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. A substantial question
       exists “only where the appellant advances a colorable argument
       that the sentencing judge’s actions were either: (1) inconsistent
       with a specific provision of the Sentencing Code; or (2) contrary
       to the fundamental norms which underlie the sentencing process.”

Kneller, 999 A.2d at 613-614.

       Here, Appellant complied with the requirements of filing a timely notice

of appeal, preserving the issue in his post-sentence motion, and including a

Rule 2119(f) statement in his appellate brief.         See Anders Brief at 3.1

Additionally, this Court has found that “[a] substantial question is raised where

an appellant alleges [his] sentence is excessive due to the sentencing court’s

error in applying the [DWE].” Kneller, 999 A.2d at 614. Accordingly, we will

review the merits of Appellant’s sentencing claim, mindful that,
       [s]entencing is a matter vested in the sound discretion of
       the sentencing judge, and a sentence will not be disturbed on
       appeal absent a manifest abuse of discretion. In this context, an
       abuse of discretion is not shown merely by an error in judgment.
       Rather, the appellant must establish, by reference to the record,
       that the sentencing court ignored or misapplied the law, exercised
       its judgment for reasons of partiality, prejudice, bias or ill will, or
       arrived at a manifestly unreasonable decision.

Commonwealth v. Shugars, 895 A.2d 1270, 1275 (Pa. Super. 2006).

       Instantly, the trial court rejected Appellant’s claim that the DWE was

erroneously applied for the following reasons:

       On February 10, 2020, [Appellant] signed a written plea
       agreement which indicated that the [DWE] applied and provided
____________________________________________

1 We recognize that, “[w]here counsel files an Anders brief, this Court has

reviewed the matter even absent a separate [Rule] 2119(f) statement.”
Commonwealth v. Zeigler, 112 A.3d 656, 661 (Pa. Super. 2015) (citations
omitted).

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       a standard[-]range [sentence] of 66 to 84 months. During the
       guilty plea colloquy[, Appellant] was advised that the [DWE]
       would apply. N.T.[,] 2/10/20[,] at 3. As part of the factual
       recitation, the Assistant District Attorney stated that [Appellant]
       struck the victim numerous times with a carbon fiber pool cue
       stick. Id. at 7-8. [Appellant] entered his guilty plea[,] which was
       accepted by the court. Id. at 8.

       Sentencing took place on June 30, 2020. [Appellant] was again
       advised that the [DWE] applied and the guideline range would be
       66 to 84 months. N.T.[,] 6/30/20[,] at 2. At the conclusion of
       the sentencing hearing[, Appellant] stated, “I agree with the
       sentence you gave me, and I’m grateful. And I’m going to say
       thank you. But you won’t hear no more from me.” Id. at 21.
       [Appellant] also stated, “From now on, I move forward in life. And
       I would like to say thank you. That’s all.” Id. [Appellant] was
       clearly placed on notice that the [DWE] applied. He was made
       aware of the guideline sentence range applicable to his case.

TCO at 3-4. Accordingly, the court concluded that “[s]entencing [Appellant]

in accordance with the [DWE] matrix was not error.” Id. at 4. Attorney Kelly

agrees, reasoning that Appellant waived his challenge to the application of the

DWE “by signing a plea agreement and [entering] into a guilty plea

acknowledging that the [DWE] would apply.” Anders Brief at 9.

       We concur with counsel and the court. The record demonstrates that

Appellant was repeatedly notified that application of the DWE was an aspect

of his plea agreement, and he knowingly and voluntarily entered that plea.

Therefore, Appellant cannot now argue that the trial court abused its discretion

by applying the DWE when he agreed that the DWE applied.2 As Appellant’s
____________________________________________

2 In any event, we would also agree with the trial court that “the pool cue stick

was capable of producing death or serious bodily injury when it was employed
by [Appellant] in a way that threatened or injured the victim” and, thus,
Appellant possessed a ‘deadly weapon’ under section 303.10(a)(2). TCO at 4
(unnumbered).

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sentencing claim is frivolous, and our independent review of the record reveals

no other, non-frivolous claims Appellant could raise herein, we affirm his

judgment of sentence and grant counsel’s petition to withdraw.

      Judgment of sentence affirmed. Petition to withdraw granted.

Judgment Entered.

Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary

Date: 09/05/2023

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