Court Opinion

ID: 9730246
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 15:06:34.315856+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:26:05.224523
License: Public Domain

Dissenting Opinion by
Mr. Justice Cohen :
Here appellant plead guilty at the preliminary hearing to the charge of murder without benefit of counsel. Even though there is no showing of prejudice, I would reverse since the rationale of White v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 59 (1963) and Hamilton v. Alabama, 368 U.S. 52 (1961) does not require such a showing.
In White v. Maryland, the conviction was reversed because defendant was not represented by counsel when he plead at the preliminary hearing even though it was not required that he plead. The same facts are present in the instant proceeding. Law enforcement officers throughout the Commonwealth must be alerted to the constitutional safeguards that have been pro*17nounced by the Supreme Court of tbe United States. Our Court should not permit any deviation, nor should we be swayed by the concern that one who is guilty might escape the consequence of his action. Rather, we should be rigid in our supervision of all governmental agencies and require strict adherence to the constitutional protections which have been enunciated.