Court Opinion

ID: 9955075
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-03-27 16:13:11.707243+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T08:15:14.846114
License: Public Domain

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NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT O.P. 65.37

  COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA                 :   IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
                                               :        PENNSYLVANIA
                                               :
                v.                             :
                                               :
                                               :
  ABRAHAM T. ALDRICH                           :
                                               :
                       Appellant               :   No. 434 MDA 2023

       Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence Entered February 2, 2023
      In the Court of Common Pleas of Perry County Criminal Division at
                       No(s): CP-50-CR-0000131-2021

 COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA                  :   IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
                                               :        PENNSYLVANIA
                                               :
               v.                              :
                                               :
                                               :
 ABRAHAM T. ALDRICH                            :
                                               :
                      Appellant                :   No. 436 MDA 2023

       Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence Entered February 2, 2023
      In the Court of Common Pleas of Perry County Criminal Division at
                       No(s): CP-50-CR-0000135-2021

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

JUDGMENT ORDER BY LAZARUS, J.:                         FILED: MARCH 27, 2024

       Abraham T. Aldrich appeals from the judgment of sentence, entered in

the Court of Common Pleas of Perry County, after pleading guilty to various

____________________________________________

* Former Justice specially assigned to the Superior Court.
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drug related charges1 on four separate criminal dockets.2 As Aldrich failed to

submit a Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b) concise statement of errors complained of on

appeal, and we find this failure to constitute per se ineffective assistance of

counsel, we remand for further proceedings.

       Briefly, between April 15 and November 15, 2020, Aldrich and his wife,

Alicia Aldrich, were involved in the distribution and use of heroin and fentanyl

while living in the Borough of Newport. On April 15, 2020, Aldrich shared

fentanyl with his neighbor, Nicholas Winter, who was later found deceased.

On September 13, 2020, Aldrich shared methamphetamine with John Heims,

who was visiting his girlfriend, also one of Aldrich’s neighbors. John Heims

was also found deceased.

       On December 1, 2022, Aldrich entered a hybrid guilty plea 3 for all four

of his outstanding cases related to the above facts and other related drug use.

____________________________________________

1 On Docket CP-50-CR-0000131-2021 (No. 131-2021), Aldrich pled guilty to

one count each of possession with intent to deliver (PWID) and involuntary
manslaughter, and two counts of tampering with physical evidence. See 35
P.S. § 780-113(a)(30); 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 2504(a); id. at § 4910(1), respectively.
On Docket CP-50-CR-0000135-2021 (No. 135-2021), Aldrich pled guilty to
one count each of PWID and involuntary manslaughter.

2 On March 20, 2023, Aldrich filed two timely notices of appeal, each listing a

separate docket number, with respect to Docket Nos. 131-2021 and 135-
2021, in compliance with our Supreme Court’s holding in Commonwealth v.
Walker, 185 A.3d 969 (Pa. 2018). Aldrich only appeals his judgment of
sentence at two of four criminal dockets. For ease of disposition, we have sua
sponte consolidated Aldrich’s appeals. See Pa.R.A.P. 513 (consolidation of
multiple appeals).

3 As part of the agreement, the Commonwealth withdrew Aldrich’s drug
delivery resulting in death charges at the above-captioned dockets.

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On February 2, 2023, Aldrich was sentenced to an aggregate term of 8 to 18

years’ incarceration.4 Aldrich filed timely post-sentence motions in both cases,

averring that the trial court imposed an excessive sentence by running his

PWID and involuntary manslaughter terms consecutively for both No. 131-

2021 and No. 135-2021, which the trial court denied on February 28, 2023.

Subsequently, Aldrich filed timely notices of appeal on March 20, 2023.5 On

March 21, 2023, the trial court ordered Aldrich to file a Rule 1925(b) statement

within 25 days, or by April 17, 2023.6

       Aldrich failed to comply with the court’s Rule 1925(b) orders and did not

file a Rule 1925(b) concise statement in either case.7 On April 19, 2023, the

trial court entered orders in both cases, stating that because Aldrich failed to
____________________________________________

4 At No. 131-2021, Aldrich was sentenced to 2 to 4 years’ incarceration for

PWID, 2 to 5 years’ incarceration for involuntary manslaughter, to be served
consecutively, and 1 to 2 years’ incarceration for each tampering with
evidence count, to be served concurrently. At No. 135-2021, Aldrich was
sentenced to 2 to 4 years’ incarceration for PWID and 2 to 5 years’
incarceration for involuntary manslaughter, to be served consecutively to each
other and to No. 131-2021.

5 Trial counsel, David Edward Wilson, Esquire, filed a petition for leave to
withdraw as counsel with the trial court on the same date. The trial court did
not rule on trial counsel’s petition.

6 The 25th day was Saturday, April 15, 2023, and, therefore, Aldrich had until

Monday, April 17, 2023, to file his Rule 1925(b) statement. See 1 Pa.C.S.A.
§ 1908 (“Whenever the last day of any such time period shall fall on a
Saturday or Sunday . . . such day shall be omitted from the computation.”).

7 We note that trial counsel filed an application to withdraw as counsel and for

a stay of proceedings with this Court on May 2, 2023. On May 5, 2023, we
granted trial counsel’s application to withdraw. On June 1, 2023, the trial
court appointed William Shreve, Esquire, to represent Aldrich on direct appeal.

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file a Rule 1925(b) statement, no Rule 1925(a) opinion would be forthcoming.

The failure to file a court-ordered Rule 1925(b) statement constitutes per se

ineffective assistance of counsel. See Pa.R.A.P. 1925(c)(3); Commonwealth

v. Thompson, 39 A.3d 335, 339-41 (Pa. Super. 2012); Commonwealth v.

Scott, 952 A.2d 1190, 1191-92 (Pa. Super. 2008); Commonwealth v.

West, 883 A.2d 654, 657-58 (Pa. Super. 2005). Because Aldrich’s counsel

failed to file a Rule 1925(b) statement and the trial court has not prepared an

opinion pursuant to Rule 1925(a), we are constrained to follow the dictates of

Rule 1925(c)(3) and remand the case to the trial court for the appointment of

new counsel, the filing of a Rule 1925(b) statement, nunc pro tunc, and a

responsive Rule 1925(a) trial court opinion.

      Case remanded for further proceedings consistent with this order. Panel

jurisdiction retained.

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