Court Opinion

ID: 9764174
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 03:13:32.008296+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:57:49.528028
License: Public Domain

Concurring and Dissenting Opinion by
Mr. Justice Nix:
While I agree with the majority’s view that only one sentence can be imposed under Bill No. 1253 even though that bill contained three separate counts, I disagree with the conclusion reached that counts (b) and (c) merged into count (a).
First it must be noted that since counts (b) and (c) describe conduct made criminal under the same statutory provision (Act of June 24, 1939, P. L. 872, §314, as amended, 18 P.S. §4314) only one penalty can be imposed even though a verdict of guilty is returned on both counts. Commonwealth v. Grosso, 192 Pa. Superior Ct. 513, 162 A. 2d 421, 1960, aff’d 401 Pa. 549, 165 A. 2d 73, cert. denied, 365 U.S. 835. Thus a sentence may be sustained upon either count (b) or count (c) but not both.
The question of merger arises when it is to be decided whether a sentence can be imposed on count (a) as well as upon count (b) or (c). The principle of merger prevents double punishment for a lesser offense when it is a necessary ingredient of the greater offense for which the defendant has also been indicted, convicted and punished. Commonwealth v. McCusker, 363 Pa. 450, 70 A. 2d 273 (1950); Commonwealth ex rel. Shaddock v. Ashe, 340 Pa. 286, 17 A. 2d 190 (1941) ; Commonwealth ex rel. Russo v. Ashe, 293 Pa. 322, 142 A. 317 (1928) ; Commonwealth v. Phillips, 215 Pa. Superior Ct. 5, 257 A. 2d 81 (1969). In my judgment, the majority arrived at a conclusion which permitted the greater offense to merge with the lesser offense, an obviously absurd result. This anomaly was probably *281occasioned by the majority’s unwitting assumption that the crime which possessed the greater maximum penalty was necessarily the greater offense for purposes of merger. The test of which crime merges with another is not dependent upon a comparison of their respective maximum penalties1 but whether the lesser crime is that which is a necessary ingredient of the greater. Section 4708 is a necessary included element of the crime described in §4814. In Commonwealth of Pa. v. Frankfeld, 114 Pa. Superior Ct. 262, 268, 173 A. 834 (1934), the Superior Court properly defined the gist of the offense described in §4314 as: “. . . verbal remonstrances, unaccompanied by threats or incitement to resistance, are insufficient. But where there is a presence of deterring power and threats of physical force, either express or implied, if the service of the writ or process is executed, it comes within the contemplation of the statute. Officers charged with the service of process should be and are under the protection of the law. To intimidate them by the use of threats, accompanied by an, exhibition of physical power and an apparent intent to use it, thus preventing the execution of process, is a crime.”
Thus the crime described in §4314 may include not only the common law offense of assault (and also possibly battery) but it also includes the additional henious element of interference with the service of court process. Thus the common law offense of assault and *282battery which is punished under §4708 is a lesser included offense within the offense described in §4314. In my opinion count (a) should merge with (b) and (c), it being only one of the elements of the offensive conduct being described in §4314. I agree that the sentence of three years is inappropriate but I differ from the majority view in that I believe the maximum sentence that may be imposed is the sentence allowable under §4314 or one year.

 Normally one would expect to find that the legislature would in fact prescribe a greater punishment for the greater offense. I believe that it is a fair assumption to explain this rather unusual situation ihat the legislature acted upon the assumption that the offender was subject to punishment under both the Act of June 24, 1939, P. D. 872, §708, 18 P.S. §4708 and also the Act of June 24, 1939, P. L. 872, §314, as amended, 18 P.S. §4314. This error should not be remedied by attempting to treat the lesser offense as the greater, but rather by subsequent legislative action.