Court Opinion

ID: 9754314
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-28 19:55:11.240135+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:27:51.999316
License: Public Domain

LALLY-GREEN, J.,
Concurring:
¶ 1 I concur with the Majority’s opinion insofar as it holds that Appellant’s issues are not waived under Pa.R.A.P.1925. I respectfully disagree, however, that Appellant’s ineffectiveness claim can be addressed on the merits. In my view, the ineffectiveness claim should be deferred to the PCRA under Commonwealth v. Grant, 572 Pa. 48, 813 A.2d 726 (2002). Since the ineffectiveness claim is the only substantive claim on appeal, I, therefore, concur in the result of the majority’s opinion.
¶ 2 As the Majority is well aware, Grant held that “as a general rule, a petitioner should wait to raise claims of ineffective assistance of trial counsel until collateral review.” Id. at 738. Our Supreme Court recently created an exception to this general rule for “ineffectiveness claims on direct appeal for which there is an evidentia-ry record developing the claims and a trial court opinion addressing those claims.” Commonwealth v. Belak, 573 Pa. 414, 825 A.2d 1252, 1255 n. 6 (2003) (emphasis add*332ed), citing, Commonwealth v. Bomar, 573 Pa. 426, 826 A.2d 831 (2003).
¶ 3 In my view, neither prong of the Bomar exception has been established. First, no evidentiary record has been developed for the purpose of deciding whether counsel was ineffective. At most, the procedural history of the case and the record from the underlying guilty plea provide a basis for reasonable speculation as to the merits of the ineffectiveness claim. See, Majority Opinion at 6-11. Second, there is no trial court opinion addressing the ineffectiveness claim. As such, I would hold that the Bomar exception does not apply. Commonwealth v. Ramos, 573 Pa. 605, 827 A.2d 1195, 1199 n. 8 (2003) {Bomar exception does not apply where the defendant did not raise the ineffectiveness claim before the trial court, and where the court did not address the ineffectiveness issue).8
¶ 4 Accordingly, I concur in the result of the majority’s opinion.

. The cases cited by the Majority do not compel a different result. In Commonwealth v. Causey, 833 A.2d 165 (Pa.Super.2003), the defendant argued on direct appeal that counsel was ineffective for failure to file a post-sentence motion challenging the weight of the evidence. Contrary to the Majority's characterization of the case (Majority Opinion at 5), the Causey Court actually deferred this claim to the PCRA. Causey, 833 A.2d 165, citing, Commonwealth v. Burkett, 2003 PA Super 293, 830 A.2d 1034. In Commonwealth v. Ingold, 823 A.2d 917 (Pa.Super.2003), this Court addressed an ineffectiveness claim on direct appeal in large part because if the claim were deferred to the PCRA, the defendant would not be eligible for relief because he is not currently serving a sentence. Id. at 919. Such is not the case here.
This Court has slightly revised and expanded the Bomar exception to include ineffectiveness claims "where the trial court has addressed the claims on the merits after having determined that the existing record is sufficiently developed for resolution of the claims.” Commonwealth v. Watson, 2003 PA Super 410, ¶ 16, 835 A.2d 786. Assuming arguendo that Watson properly interpreted and applied Supreme Court precedent, I would note that the trial court did not make such a determination. Thus, Watson does not apply.