Court Opinion

ID: 9639121
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 16:05:29.994736+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:10:12.728753
License: Public Domain

WICKERSHAM, Judge,
dissenting:
The majority has determined that because the information did not accuse appellee of possessing a deadly weapon, and because appellee did not admit in his guilty plea that he possessed a deadly weapon, the Commonwealth may not present evidence at the sentencing hearing to establish that appellee possessed a weapon during the commission of the *624crimes charged. Because I would hold that the Commonwealth may present such evidence for sentencing purposes, I dissent.
Appellee pleaded guilty to charges of unlawful restraint, aggravated assault, and theft by unlawful taking. Appellee admitted every element of each offense; thus, each element was proved beyond a reasonable doubt. Possession of a deadly weapon is not an element of any of these crimes. It was not incumbent upon the Commonwealth, therefore, to include this factor in the information filed against appellee. Compare Commonwealth v. Allen, 508 Pa. 114, 494 A.2d 1067 (1985), a prior conviction of a specified violent crime, is not an element of the offense. Furthermore, it was not necessary for appellee to admit that he possessed a deadly weapon in order to be found guilty of the crimes charged. As the Attorney General points out, when the Commonwealth proved beyond a reasonable doubt that appellant committed the instant offenses, it concurrently established its right to impose punishment upon appellee. See Brief for Attorney General at 17-18.
It is at this point that the Sentencing Guidelines in general, and the deadly weapon enhancement provision specifically, come into play. The guidelines do not play a role in the guilt determining process; rather, they are a tool to be used, together with a consideration of the circumstances of the case, by the sentencing judge in choosing the appropriate punishment to be meted out to the defendant. In imposing sentence,
[t]he court must consider the character of the defendant and the particular circumstances of the offense in light of the legislative guidelines for sentencing, and must impose a sentence that is the minimum sentence consistent with the protection of the public, the gravity of the offense, and the rehabilitative needs of the defendant.
Commonwealth v. Doyle, 275 Pa.Super. 373, 380, 418 A.2d 1336, 1340 (1979) (emphasis added). Surely the possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a crime is a circumstance of the case which the sentencing judge should *625consider in imposing sentence; the deadly weapon enhancement provision ensures such consideration. See Commonwealth v. Wright, 508 Pa. 25,---494 A.2d 354, 357-358 (1985).
I believe that section 9712 of the Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Act, 42 Pa.C.S. § 9712, supports my position. Section 9712 essentially provides that a defendant who visibly possessed a firearm during the commission of certain enumerated felonies shall be sentenced to a minimum of five years imprisonment. Particularly pertinent to the present problem is subpart (b) of that statute:
(b) Proof at sentencing. — Provisions of this section shall not be an element of the crime and notice thereof to the defendant shall not be required prior to conviction, but reasonable notice of the Commonwealth’s intention to proceed under this section shall be provided after conviction and before sentencing. The applicability of this section shall be determined at sentencing. The court shall consider any evidence presented at trial and shall afford the Commonwealth and the defendant an opportunity to present any necessary additional evidence and shall determine, by a preponderance of the evidence, if this section is applicable.
In Commonwealth v. Wright, supra, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that section 9712 is constitutional.
Admittedly, the case at bar is concerned with the deadly weapon enhancement provision of the Sentencing Guidelines rather than the Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Act; therefore, section 9712 is not controlling. Nevertheless, I believe that the procedure and language set forth in section 9712 are equally relevant to this and other cases dealing with the deadly weapon enhancement provision of the Sentencing Guidelines. The deadly weapon enhancement provision, like section 9712, “applies only in the event the defendant is convicted ... and thus relates solely to the sentencing proceedings.” Commonwealth v. Wright, supra, 508 Pa. at —, 494 A.2d at 357. Thus, possession of a weapon is not an element of the crimes charged and need not be *626asserted prior to conviction. Applying section 9712 to the case at bar, it is clear that the Commonwealth was not required to give appellant notice of the applicability of the deadly weapon enhancement provision, or otherwise present evidence of appellant’s possession and use of the hunting knife, prior to the entry of appellant’s guilty plea.
Section 9712 further provides that the applicability of the section should be determined by the court at sentencing by a preponderance of the evidence. In Wright, supra, our supreme court held that this standard of proof does not violate due process.
[W]e conclude that it is reasonable for the defendant and the Commonwealth to share equally in any risk of error which may be present in the factfinding process. In the context of a section 9712 proceeding, moreover, the risk of error is slight. Visible possession of a firearm is a simple, straightforward issue susceptible of objective proof. There is scant potential that suspicion and conjecture will enter into the factfinder’s decision. In addition, evidence of visible possession is amenable to meaningful appellate review. Thus we are convinced that the preponderance standard satisfies the minimum requirements of due process as employed in the legislature’s mandatory sentencing scheme.
Id., 508 Pa. at —, 494 A.2d at 362.
[I]t is important to keep in mind that the defendant has already been found guilty of criminal conduct calling for some form of punishment. By his conviction the defendant has forfeited his right to remain free in society and is subject to incarceration. Proof of visible possession of a firearm by a preponderance of the evidence at the time of sentence based upon that conviction is a fair standard and is the process due in these circumstances.
Id., Concurring Opinion by Larsen, J., 508 Pa. at —, 494 A.2d at 357. I would hold that a preponderance of the evidence standard is also appropriate in cases applying the deadly weapon enhancement provision of the Sentencing Guidelines.
*627I believe that the Commonwealth met this burden of proof in the case at bar. Both the statement of the victim as contained in the presentence report and the testimony of the victim at the time of sentencing indicated that Taylor possessed and used a deadly weapon during commission of the crimes charged. Appellee neither objected to nor contradicted this evidence. In the absence of objection by the appellee, the sentencing judge was free to consider the presentence report and the victim’s testimony. Commonwealth v. Doyle, supra, 275 Pa.Super. at 382, 418 A.2d at 1341. Thus, the Commonwealth proved by a preponderance of the evidence that appellee possessed a deadly weapon during the commission of the current conviction offense.
Despite my belief that the Commonwealth proved by a preponderance of the evidence that appellee possessed and used a weapon during commission of the current conviction offense, I feel nevertheless that a new sentencing hearing is required. Section 9712(b) of the Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Act requires that “reasonable notice of the Commonwealth’s intention to proceed under this section shall be provided after conviction and before sentencing.” I agree that such notice should also be required under the deadly weapon enhancement provision in order to insure that a convicted defendant’s due process rights are not violated. Instantly, it is not clear whether appellee was provided with such notice. Perhaps appellee’s failure to present contradictory evidence at the sentencing hearing was caused by a lack of notice. Thus, I would remand for a new sentencing hearing at which both the Commonwealth and appellee could present evidence as to the issue of whether appellee possessed a deadly weapon during commission of the current conviction offense. After hearing such evidence, the sentencing court should then determine, by a preponderance of the evidence, whether the deadly weapon enhancement provision of the Sentencing Guidelines is applicable.
Although I do not deny that it would be better practice for the Commonwealth to indicate its belief that the defend*628ant possessed a deadly weapon during the commission of the crimes charged sometime prior to the entry of a guilty plea, I do not agree that its failure to do so in the instant case was fatal to its request for application of the deadly weapon enhancement provision of the sentencing guidelines. Thus, I disagree with Parts I and II of the majority opinion; I would remand for a new sentencing hearing and resentencing.
With respect to Part III of the majority opinion, I agree with the Concurring Statement by Johnson, J. that the constitutionality issue was not raised by the parties to this appeal and should not be raised sua sponte by this court.