Court Opinion

ID: 9704993
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 00:53:55.192144+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:22:07.192997
License: Public Domain

OLSZEWSKI, Judge,
concurring:
Though agreeing with the majority’s disposition of this particular case, I write separately to emphasize that this decision is limited to the facts of this case. The majority’s holding does not establish a per se rule that an accused is incapable of waiving his constitutional rights whenever he *166asserts that he is suffering from a mental illness. Both this Court and our Supreme Court have recognized that the mental or physical deficiencies of an accused are not conclusive evidence of an accused’s inability to waive his constitutional rights. See Commonwealth v. Glover, 488 Pa. 459, 412 A.2d 855 (1980) (there is no per se rule of inability to waive constitutional rights based on mental deficiencies); Commonwealth v. Neely, 298 Pa.Super. 328, 444 A.2d 1199 (1982) (a defendant may be suffering from a mental illness and still be capable of waiving his constitutional rights).
Trial judges, consequently, should be more wary of concluding that an accused is incapable of waiving his constitutional rights merely because he suffers from a mental illness. The trial judge must thoroughly examine all the circumstances surrounding the particular case to determine if the accused made a knowing and intelligent waiver. See Glover, supra.