Court Opinion

ID: 9754943
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-28 20:19:15.857525+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:28:00.954904
License: Public Domain

HOFFMAN, Judge,
dissenting:
I dissent. First, I believe that our Court can and should consider appellant’s challenge to the voluntariness of his guilty plea. Second, we should remand for resentencing pursuant to Commonwealth v. Riggins, 474 Pa. 115, 377 A.2d 140 (1977).
Appellant first contends that his guilty plea was involuntarily entered. The Majority concludes that appellant’s petition to withdraw his guilty plea was a “nullity” based on Pa.R.App.P. 1701(a). According to the Majority, Rule 1701(a) precludes both the lower court and our Court from considering appellant’s guilty plea. While I agree that Rule 1701 prevents the lower court from considering the voluntariness of the plea, this does not explain why our Court cannot proceed with the voluntariness issue.
Indeed, Commonwealth v. Marvin, 248 Pa.Super. 452, 375 A.2d 184 (1977) provides authority for our direct review of the voluntariness of the plea. In Marvin, supra, our Court held that when an appellant challenges the sentence imposed in addition to the voluntariness of the guilty plea we can consider the voluntariness issue on direct appeal without requiring appellant first to file a petition to withdraw his plea with the lower court. We stated:
“In Commonwealth v. Roberts, 237 Pa.Super. 336, 352 A.2d 140 (1975), we held that before a guilty plea could be attacked on direct appeal the defendant must file in the lower court a petition to withdraw the plea. However, in Commonwealth v. Brunner, 243 Pa.Super. 55, 364 A.2d 446 (1976), we somewhat softened this rule. There we said:
‘Both [Commonwealth v. Roberts, supra; and Commonwealth v. Lee, 460 Pa. 324, 333 A.2d 749 (1975), on which this *440court relied in reaching its holding in Commonwealth v. Roberts, supra,] are limited by their own language to situations where “the only challenge to the proceedings in the trial court is directed to the validity of the guilty plea itself.” . . . Here appellant has also challenged the legality of his sentence. Interests of judicial economy would not be served by declining to reach the merits in such a case, and remanding for filing of a withdrawal petition.’ 243 Pa.Super. at 59, 364 A.2d at 448.” Marvin, supra, 248 Pa.Super. at 453, 375 A.2d at 185.
In the instant case, appellant challenges his sentence as well as the voluntariness of the guilty plea. Accordingly, Marvin allows consideration of the voluntariness of the plea.
Second, I dissent from the Majority’s affirmance of appellant’s sentence. In the instant case, the record is devoid of a statement of reasons for the imposition of the particular sentence chosen. Consequently, our Court cannot undertake the kind of meaningful appellate review of sentencing which our Supreme Court contemplated in Commonwealth v. Riggins, 474 Pa. 115, 377 A.2d 140 (1977). Accordingly, I would vacate the judgment of sentence and remand to afford the trial court an opportunity to re-sentence appellant and to include a statement of reasons for the sentence imposed.