Court Opinion

ID: 9380979
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-03-21 18:07:00.65584+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:17:28.733156
License: Public Domain

J-A23008-22

NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37

    COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA               :   IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
                                               :        PENNSYLVANIA
                                               :
                v.                             :
                                               :
                                               :
    ERIK BURNELL WILLIAMS                      :
                                               :
                       Appellant               :   No. 1533 MDA 2021

       Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence Entered November 10, 2021
       In the Court of Common Pleas of Adams County Criminal Division at
                         No(s): CP-01-CR-0000851-2020

BEFORE:      BOWES, J., McCAFFERY, J., and STEVENS, P.J.E.*

MEMORANDUM BY BOWES, J.:                       FILED: MARCH 21, 2023

        Erik Burnell Williams appeals from the judgment of sentence of two

years of probation, which was imposed after the trial court convicted him of

driving under the influence (“DUI”) of a schedule I controlled substance and

DUI of a metabolite of a schedule I controlled substance. We affirm.

        At approximately two a.m. on February 3, 2020, Pennsylvania State

Police (“PSP”) Troopers Matthew Kile and Justin Horan were patrolling in a

marked SUV in Adams County, Pennsylvania, when they observed a Chevrolet

Avalanche vehicle traveling approximately one-half mile ahead of them. See

N.T. Suppression Hearing, 3/18/21, at 7. The troopers increased their speed

to ten miles per hour above the posted speed limit until they reduced the

distance between their vehicle and the Avalanche to approximately two or

____________________________________________

*   Former Justice specially assigned to the Superior Court.
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three car lengths, allowing them to read the other automobile’s license plate.

The officers continued to follow the Avalanche while they submitted the tag to

their database to ensure the vehicle was properly registered and that there

were no outstanding warrants or other issues with the owner.         Once the

Avalanche came into view, what happened subsequent was captured by the

mobile vehicle recorder (“MVR”) on the PSP vehicle.      See Commonwealth

Exhibit 1 (capturing the initial driving portion of the interaction); see also

Commonwealth Exhibit 2 (audio and video recording containing sound and

video of the remainder of the encounter between the troopers and Appellant).

      Approximately one-tenth of a mile later, the Avalanche signaled and

pulled over to the side of the road. The troopers continued driving a short

distance before stopping their vehicle to await completion of their database

search.   Seconds later, the troopers observed the Avalanche proceed past

them. Since their inquiry was still in progress, the troopers reentered the

highway and continued to follow the Avalanche, though this time at a greater

distance. Almost immediately, the vehicle signaled and pulled into the parking

lot of the Oxford Township municipal building. Finding it “highly unusual” that

a vehicle would pull over twice in such a short period of time without being

directed to do so, the officers also entered the parking lot. N.T. Suppression

Hearing, 3/18/21, at 11. The troopers parked their SUV to the left rear of the

Avalanche without activating their lights or sirens. This positioning allowed

the Avalanche multiple points of egress from the parking lot.

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      The troopers approached the vehicle in a marked uniform with a

flashlight. Id. at 13. Upon reaching the driver’s side window, the troopers

observed Appellant yelling into his cellular telephone that he had pulled into

the municipal parking lot of his own volition because the police were

“harassing” him. See Commonwealth Exhibit 2 (“So I pulled over and then

they pulled over and then I pulled into the municipal building . . . well they

didn’t pull me over. They don’t have their lights on. They are just fucking

here harassing me pretty much.”).       Noticing that Appellant’s speech was

slurred, Trooper Kile asked Appellant if he had his license on him and if

“everything was alright.” Id. Appellant confirmed that he had his license and

explained that he had pulled over because the officers were “flying up on

[him.]” Id. Recognizing Appellant’s constricted pupils, Trooper Kile asked

whether Appellant had recently imbibed any drugs or alcohol.          Appellant

denied ingesting any such substances and, again, accused the troopers of

harassing him. The troopers briefly returned to their vehicle with Appellant’s

license.

      When Trooper Kile reapproached the Avalanche, he observed Appellant

still on his cellular phone reiterating that the police had not pulled him over.

Id. Realizing that Trooper Kile was standing next to him, Appellant stated,

for the first time, that he would like to go home. Trooper Kile responded that

he would need to check Appellant’s pupils before he could allow him to leave,

since his speech was slurred. After unsuccessfully attempting to complete

field sobriety testing with Appellant still seated in the vehicle, Trooper Kile

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asked Appellant to exit the vehicle. Appellant asked the person on the other

end of the phone to come to the municipal building immediately because he

was being harassed. Appellant then exited the vehicle and engaged in a brief

scuffle with the troopers.     Afterwards, Appellant remained agitated but

complied with their requests to complete multiple field sobriety tests. The

scene further devolved when Appellant’s brother appeared. Once additional

troopers arrived on scene, Appellant was placed under arrest and transported

to Hanover Hospital where he consented to a blood draw. The results revealed

that Appellant’s blood contained the active component and the metabolites of

marijuana, a schedule I substance. Appellant produced a valid Pennsylvania

medical marijuana card. Based on the foregoing, Appellant was charged with

DUI of a schedule I controlled substance and DUI of the metabolites of a

controlled substance.

      On October 16, 2020, Appellant filed an omnibus pretrial motion seeking

suppression of the evidence.     Appellant argued that the initial parking lot

interaction was not a mere encounter because the troopers initiated the stop

by following Appellant’s vehicle at a high rate of speed. See Omnibus Pretrial

Motion, 10/16/20, at ¶ 37.     Since the police had forced him off the road,

Appellant contended that he did not feel free to leave the parking lot or decline

their requests for his identification. Id. at ¶¶ 38-39. Accordingly, Appellant

averred that he was subjected to an investigatory detention without the

requisite reasonable suspicion and all evidence derived from the stop should

be suppressed. Id.

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      On March 18, 2021, the suppression court held a hearing on the

suppression motion. After confirming that Appellant only wished to challenge

the legality of the initial encounter in the municipal building parking lot, the

court allowed the Commonwealth to present the testimony of the troopers,

who detailed their interaction with Appellant as described above. See N.T.

Suppression Hearing, 3/18/21, at 4. The Commonwealth also submitted the

MVR recordings which captured the entire event.           Appellant testified in

contrast to the troopers, claiming that he was forced to pull over the first time

because the officers were travelling at a high rate of speed and had nearly

collided with his rear bumper. Id. at 34-35. While Appellant conceded that

the police never employed their lights or sirens to initiate a stop, he contended

that his second roadway exit was, again, due to the police “forc[ing] me off

the road because they were driving too fast.” Id. at 41. At the conclusion of

the hearing, the suppression court took the matter under advisement so that

it could review the MVR recordings and the parties could provide memoranda

of law supporting their positions.

      After   receiving   post-hearing    briefs   from   Appellant    and   the

Commonwealth, the suppression court issued an order denying the motion

and authored an opinion in which it rendered the necessary findings of fact

and conclusions of law.     Specifically, the suppression court credited the

troopers’ testimony, while rejecting Appellant’s claims that the officers

initiated a de facto traffic stop by forcing him off the road. The suppression

court reasoned that Appellant’s testimony was not corroborated by the MVR

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recordings, which demonstrated that the officers never came within two car

lengths of Appellant’s vehicle and had not attempted to initiate a traffic stop

of Appellant.   See Suppression Court Opinion, 3/30/21, at 4.        Since the

troopers did not activate emergency lights to stop the vehicle, position their

vehicle in a manner that blocked Appellant’s exit, brandish weapons, display

a show of force, or make any threats or commands, the court concluded that

the troopers’ initial interaction with Appellant was a mere encounter which did

not implicate any federal or state constitutional consequences. Id. at 5-6.

      Relying on the testimony from the suppression hearing, Appellant

proceeded to a stipulated non-jury trial before a different judge. Appellant

sought dismissal of both DUI charges due to his possession of a valid

prescription for a medical marijuana card. See N.T. Non-Jury Trial, 4/26/21,

at 2. The court denied the motion, explaining that having a medical marijuana

card is not a valid defense to metabolite DUI since the subsections charged

prohibited operating a vehicle with any amount of a schedule I controlled

substance in the driver’s blood and marijuana was listed as a schedule I

controlled substance. Id. at 3. Afterwards, the court found Appellant guilty

of both DUI charges.

      On February 26, 2021, Appellant proceeded to sentencing.        The trial

court sentenced Appellant for DUI of a schedule I controlled substance to

twenty-four months of probation with one hundred eight days of restrictive

DUI conditions. The court also ordered Appellant to pay a $1,500 mandatory

fine and court costs.     Finally, Appellant received a mandatory license

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suspension of sixty days.     The DUI charge pertaining to the marijuana

metabolites merged for sentencing purposes. Appellant did not pursue post-

sentence motions. Instead, this timely appeal followed. Both Appellant and

the trial court complied with the mandates of Pa.R.A.P. 1925.

      Appellant raises the following issues for our review:

      1.    Whether the [suppression] court erred in its order of March
            30, 2021 denying Appellant’s pretrial motion to suppress
            evidence due to lack of reasonable suspicion to effectuate a
            stop of Appellant’s vehicle?

      2.    Whether the evidence was insufficient to support a
            conviction under 75 [Pa.C.S.] § 3802 §§ D1 DUI: Controlled
            Substance – Schedule I when Appellant is a lawful user of
            medical marijuana, no marijuana was found on Appellant’s
            person or vehicle and there was no evidence presented at
            trial that Appellant was impaired?

Appellant’s brief at 4 (cleaned up).

      In his first claim, Appellant argues that the court erred when it denied

his suppression motion due to a lack of reasonable suspicion to effectuate a

stop of his vehicle. See Appellant’s brief at 7. Preliminarily, we note that,

      [a]n appellate court’s standard of review in addressing a challenge
      to the denial of a suppression motion is limited to determining
      whether the suppression court’s factual findings are supported by
      the record and whether the legal conclusions drawn from those
      facts are correct. Because the Commonwealth prevailed before
      the suppression court, we may consider only the evidence of the
      Commonwealth and so much of the evidence for the defense as
      remains uncontradicted when read in the context of the record as
      a whole. Where the suppression court’s factual findings are
      supported by the record, the appellate court is bound by those
      findings and may reverse only if the court’s legal conclusions are
      erroneous.    Where the appeal of the determination of the
      suppression court turns on allegations of legal error, the

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       suppression court’s legal conclusions are not binding on an
       appellate court, whose duty it is to determine if the suppression
       court properly applied the law to the facts. Thus, the conclusions
       of law of the courts below are subject to plenary review.

Commonwealth v. Smith, 164 A.3d 1255, 1257 (Pa.Super. 2017) (cleaned

up).

       Both the United States and Pennsylvania Constitutions provide

coterminous protections against “unreasonable searches and seizures.” See

Interest of T.W., 261 A.3d 409, 418 (Pa. 2021). The law recognizes three

distinct levels of interaction between police officers and citizens: (1) a mere

encounter, (2) an investigative detention, and (3) a custodial detention. See

Commonwealth v. Mackey, 177 A.3d 221, 227 (Pa.Super. 2017).                    Our

Supreme Court has reiterated the requirements that distinguish the

classifications of contacts between the police and the citizenry as follows:

       The first is a mere encounter, sometimes referred to as a
       consensual encounter, which does not require the officer to have
       any suspicion that the citizen is or has been engaged in criminal
       activity. This interaction also does not compel the citizen to stop
       or respond to the officer. A mere encounter does not constitute a
       seizure, as the citizen is free to choose whether to engage with
       the officer and comply with any requests made or, conversely, to
       ignore the officer and continue on his or her way. The second
       type of interaction, an investigative detention, is a temporary
       detention of a citizen. This interaction constitutes a seizure of a
       person, and to be constitutionally valid police must have a
       reasonable suspicion that criminal activity is afoot. The third, a
       custodial detention, is the functional equivalent of an arrest and
       must be supported by probable cause. A custodial detention also
       constitutes a seizure.

       No bright lines separate these types of [interactions], but the
       United States Supreme Court has established an objective test by
       which courts may ascertain whether a seizure has occurred to

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      elevate the interaction beyond a mere encounter. The test, often
      referred to as the “free to leave test,” requires the court to
      determine whether, taking into account all of the circumstances
      surrounding the encounter, the police conduct would have
      communicated to a reasonable person that he was not at liberty
      to ignore the police presence and go about his business.
      [W]henever a police officer accosts an individual and restrains his
      freedom to walk away, [the officer] has “seized” that person.

Commonwealth v. Adams, 205 A.3d 1195, 1199-1200 (Pa. 2019). Whether

a seizure has occurred is a question of law involving a plenary scope of review.

See Commonwealth v. Au, 42 A.3d 1002, 1006 (Pa. 2012).

      When    initially   evaluating   the   level   of   interaction   between   law

enforcement and a citizen to determine whether, and at what point, a seizure

may have occurred, “courts conduct an objective examination of the totality

of the surrounding circumstances.” Commonwealth v. Lyles, 97 A.3d 298,

302 (Pa. 2014). Relevant factors of that analysis include, but are not limited

to: “the number of officers present during the interaction; whether the officer

informs the citizen they are suspected of criminal activity; the officer’s

demeanor and tone of voice; the location and timing of the interaction; the

visible presence of weapons on the officer; and the questions asked.”

Commonwealth v. Luczki, 212 A.3d 530, 543 (Pa.Super. 2019) (internal

quotation marks omitted). Importantly, a seizure does not occur when officers

“merely approach a person in public and question the individual or request to

see identification” so long as the officer does not imply that the citizen is

required to comply with their request. See Lyles, supra at 303.

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      Appellant contends that the troopers had no legal authority to approach

his parked vehicle and ask for identification because there was no evidence

that he needed assistance or had violated any traffic laws. See Appellant’s

brief at 9. In his view, the troopers forced a traffic stop when they twice

approached his vehicle at a high rate of speed. Thus, the troopers needed

reasonable suspicion that criminal activity was afoot before approaching the

vehicle and requesting his identification. Id. at 9-10. We disagree.

      We find our Supreme Court’s decision in Au, supra instructive. In Au,

a police officer was conducting a routine patrol in the early morning hours

when he observed a vehicle parked at a closed business establishment. Id.

at 1003. Finding this occurrence unusual, the officer pulled into the parking

lot and positioned his vehicle at an angle relative to the parked vehicle to

illuminate the passenger side without blocking the vehicle’s ability to exit or

activating his emergency lights. Id. The officer approached on foot with a

flashlight, observed six occupants, and watched the defendant roll down his

window.    The officer asked the defendant “what’s going on[?]” and the

defendant responded we are just “hanging out.” Id. After asking whether

the occupants were eighteen years of age and receiving a negative response,

the officer asked the defendant for his identification. The defendant opened

the glove compartment, revealing two baggies of marijuana. There was no

evidence of any criminal activity or a violation of the Motor Vehicle Code prior

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to the defendant opening the glove compartment. A subsequent search of the

vehicle uncovered additional illegal drugs.

      Following the defendant’s arrest, he sought to suppress the drug

evidence, alleging that the interaction amounted to an investigative detention

unsupported by reasonable suspicion. The trial court suppressed the evidence

and an en banc panel of this Court affirmed that ruling. See Commonwealth

v. Au, 986 A.2d 864 (Pa.Super. 2009) (en banc). However, our Supreme

Court reversed, holding that the police officer’s interaction with the defendant

amounted to a mere encounter, explaining as follows:

      In the present case, the arresting officer’s unrebutted testimony
      indicates that he did not: activate the emergency lights on his
      vehicle[;] position his vehicle so as to block the car that [the
      defendant] was seated in from exiting the parking lot[;] brandish
      his weapon; make intimidating movement or overwhelming show
      of force; make a threat or a command; or speak in an
      authoritative tone. . . . In terms of the use of the arresting officer’s
      headlights and flashlight this was in furtherance of the officer’s
      safety, and we conclude it was within the ambit of acceptable,
      non-escalatory factors. . . .

      Pursuant to governing Fourth Amendment law, we hold that the
      arresting officer’s request for identification did not transform his
      encounter with [the defendant] into an unconstitutional
      investigatory detention.

Id. at 1008-09.

      Our own review of the MVR recordings reveals the similarities between

Au and this case.     Herein, the troopers did not travel at an extraordinary

speed, tailgate Appellant, activate their emergency lights and sirens, or make

any other show of force that would convey to a reasonable person in

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Appellant’s position that he needed to exit the roadway. Instead, the troopers

maintained a safe distance during the short time that they were behind

Appellant’s vehicle on a public roadway. See also Suppression Court Opinion,

3/30/21, at 2-4. Since Appellant exited and parked in the municipal building

lot of his own volition, his decision to do so did not create a traffic stop that

required reasonable suspicion. Critically, as in Au, the troopers parked their

vehicle perpendicular to Appellant’s vehicle without blocking his ability to exit

the lot and approached to ask questions targeting Appellant’s well-being and

identification.   Although Appellant repeatedly accused the troopers of

harassing him, he acknowledged that he pulled over without being stopped

and provided his license without evincing a desire to terminate the interaction.

      Given the totality of the circumstances in this case, Appellant’s initial

interaction with the troopers constituted a mere encounter.          We cannot

conclude that a reasonable person would have thought they were being

restrained when a police vehicle drove behind them on a roadway or when

two officers approached that vehicle, which was parked at a closed

establishment, to inquire about the operator’s well-being. Thus, consistent

with Au, Appellant was not seized within the meaning of the Fourth

Amendment to the United States Constitution or Article 1, Section 8 of the

Pennsylvania Constitution when he pulled into the municipal parking lot or

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during the initial interaction that occurred there. Therefore, Appellant is not

entitled to any relief on his first issue.1

       In his second claim, Appellant contends that the Commonwealth

presented insufficient evidence to establish that he had a Schedule I substance

or the metabolite of Schedule I substance in his blood, because “medical

marijuana” is not a Schedule I controlled substance in Pennsylvania.       See

Appellant’s brief at 10-14.

       Our scope and standard of review when considering challenges to the

sufficiency of the evidence are well settled:

____________________________________________

1 To the extent Appellant’s argument that he “did not engage in any conduct
that would suggest to the police that he needed assistance” can be construed
as an assertion that the community caretaking exception to the warrant
requirement does not apply, we note that this claim is waived due to
Appellant’s failure to raise it before the suppression court. See Appellant’s
brief at 9; see also Pa.R.A.P. 302(a) (“Issues not raised in the trial court are
waived and cannot be raised for the first time on appeal.”). However, even if
properly preserved, Appellant would not be entitled to relief. The community
caretaking exception applies only where a seizure has occurred, providing
police with the necessary reasonable suspicion to justify an investigative
detention. See, e.g. Commonwealth v. Schneider, 239 A.3d 161, 170-71
(Pa.Super. 2020) (finding the community caretaking exception did not allow
the police to enter a home without a warrant to further investigate whether
assistance was required where nothing in the defendant’s demeanor,
statements, outward appearance, or condition indicated that he needed police
assistance); see also, e.g. Commonwealth v. Livingstone, 174 A.3d 609,
637 (Pa. 2017) (finding that the trooper’s warrantless seizure of the defendant
to ascertain if she needed help was not permitted under the community
caretaking doctrine because the facts did not establish that the defendant
actually needed assistance). Herein, the only portion of the interaction that
Appellant challenged amounted to a mere encounter. Thus, the troopers did
not need to possess reasonable suspicion and the community caretaking
exception is inapplicable.

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      Because a determination of evidentiary sufficiency presents a
      question of law, our standard of review is de novo and our scope
      of review is plenary. In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence,
      we must determine whether the evidence admitted at trial and all
      reasonable inferences drawn therefrom, viewed in the light most
      favorable to the Commonwealth as verdict winner, were sufficient
      to prove every element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt.
      [T]he facts and circumstances established by the Commonwealth
      need not preclude every possibility of innocence. It is within the
      province of the fact-finder to determine the weight to be accorded
      to each witness’s testimony and to believe all, part, or none of the
      evidence. The Commonwealth may sustain its burden of proving
      every element of the crime by means of wholly circumstantial
      evidence. Moreover, as an appellate court, we may not re-weigh
      the evidence and substitute our judgment for that of the fact-
      finder.

Commonwealth v. Williams, 176 A.3d 298, 305–06 (Pa.Super. 2017)

(citations and quotation marks omitted).

      The Medical Marijuana Act (“MMA”) permits qualifying individuals to

lawfully consume marijuana.        See 35 P.S. §§ 10231.101–10231.2110.

Notwithstanding this, the list of Schedule I controlled substances set forth in

the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) currently includes marijuana. See 35

P.S. § 780-104(1)(iv).    Critically, the applicable portion of the DUI statute

states:

      (d) Controlled Substances. – An individual may not drive,
      operate or be in actual physical control of the movement of a
      vehicle under any of the following circumstances:

          (1) there is in the individual’s blood any amount of a:

             (i) Schedule I controlled substance, as defined in the
             act of April 14, 1972 (P.L. 233, No. 64), known as the
             [CSA].

             ...

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            (iii) metabolite of a substance under subparagraph (i)
            or (ii).

75 Pa.C.S. § 3802(d)(1)(i), (iii). Thus, § 3802(d)(1) does not require that a

driver be impaired; rather, it prohibits the operation of a motor vehicle by any

driver who has any amount of a Schedule I controlled substance in his blood.

See Commonwealth v. Etchison, 916 A.2d 1169, 1174 (Pa.Super. 2007);

see also 75 Pa.C.S. § 3810 (stating that “[t]he fact that a person charged

with violating this chapter is or has been legally entitled to use alcohol or

controlled substances is not a defense to a charge of violating his chapter.”).

With regard to the significance of Appellant’s medical marijuana card, during

the pendency of this appeal, this Court found that the Schedule I designation

for marijuana pertinent to § 3802(d)(1) includes medical marijuana.        See

Commonwealth v. Stone, 273 A.3d 1163, 1174 (Pa.Super. 2022) (en banc);

see also Commonwealth v. Dabney, 274 A.3d 1283, 1291 (Pa.Super.

2022) (“[M]edical marijuana remains a Schedule I controlled substance for

purposes of Section 3802(d)(1).”) In so holding, we noted that while “[t]he

[MMA] anticipates the removal of marijuana from Schedule I. . ., the General

Assembly has not enacted legislation amending the MMA, CSA, or the DUI

statutes to remove marijuana from its Schedule I designation under state

law.” Stone, supra at 1172. Since the issuance of Stone, neither 75 Pa.C.S.

§ 3802(d)(1) nor 35 P.S. § 780-104(1)(iv) have been amended to distinguish

between medical and non-medical marijuana. Accordingly, pursuant to our

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holding in Stone, § 3802(d)(1)(i) specifically prohibits driving with any

amount of medical or non-medical marijuana in the driver’s blood.

      Herein, it is undisputed that Appellant was driving a motor vehicle at a

time when detectable amounts of marijuana and its metabolites were

discovered in his blood stream. Accordingly, the Commonwealth presented

sufficient evidence to support Appellant’s DUI conviction for imbibing a

Schedule I controlled substance and its metabolites pursuant to 75 Pa.C.S.

§ 3802(d)(1)(i) and (iii).

      Judgment of sentence affirmed.

Judgment Entered.

Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary

Date: 3/21/2023

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