Com. v. Fields, R. ( 2017 )

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NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
PENNSYLVANIA
Appellee
v.
RICKY FIELDS
Appellant No. 214 WDA 2016
Appeal from the PCRA Order dated January 12, 2016
In the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County
Criminal Division at No(s): CP-02-CR-0006918-2012
BEFORE: GANTMAN, P.J., FORD ELLIOTT, P.J.E., and SOLANO, J.
MEMORANDUM BY SOLANO, J.: FILED MAY 19, 2017
Appellant, Ricky Fields, appeals from the order denying his petition
filed under the Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA), 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 9541-9546.
PCRA counsel also filed a petition to withdraw pursuant to Turner/Finley.1
We affirm and grant PCRA counsel’s petition to withdraw.
Appellant was found guilty of possession of a prohibited firearm,
carrying firearms without a license, and driving while operating privileges
are suspended or revoked.2 The facts of this case are related in an opinion
of the trial court following Appellant’s conviction:
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1
Commonwealth v. Turner, 544 A.2d 927 (Pa. 1988); Commonwealth
v. Finley, 550 A.2d 213 (Pa. Super. 1988) (en banc).
2
18 Pa.C.S. §§ 6105(a)(1), 6106(a)(1) and 75 Pa.C.S. § 1543(a),
respectively.
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This matter arises out of the arrest on March 4, 2012 of
[Appellant] following an encounter between [Appellant]
and police officers responding to a call of shots fired in
Homestead, Pennsylvania.
[Appellant joined co-defendant’s] Motion to Suppress all
evidence obtained during the encounter and a hearing was
held on December 20, 2012.
At the Suppression Hearing[,] the Commonwealth called
Officer James Wintruba of the Homestead Police
Department[,] who testified that on March 4, 2012 at
approximately 1:00 a.m. he was dispatched to West 15th
Avenue in Homestead for a report of numerous shots fired
in the area. Officer Wintruba testified that this is a high
crime and drug area with numerous reports of shots fired
and attempted homicides, as well as a homicide having
occurred within the last year.
Officer Wintruba proceeded to an alleyway along the
rear of the 300 block of W[est] 15th St[reet]. As he was
in the alleyway he observed a silver four door Cadillac
parked at an angle on the left side of the street with the
brake lights on. The rear of the car was one to two feet
from the curb and the front wheels were touching the curb.
Officer Wintruba testified that he was using his spotlight to
scan the area and as he was passing the Cadillac he ran
the spotlight through the windows and saw the occupants
slouched down inside the vehicle so low that he could only
see the tops of their heads. At that point Officer Wintruba
backed his vehicle up and checked on the registration of
the vehicle and was informed that the vehicle’s registration
had been checked four times recently related to possible
criminal activity.
Officer Wintruba then decided to watch the vehicle and
call for backup. As he was watching the vehicle, all four
doors opened simultaneously and four men got out of the
vehicle. He noted that the driver was wearing a gray
jacket and the passenger directly behind him was wearing
a blue coat with a blue shirt and horizontal stripes. The
other two passengers were both dressed similarly and
were similarly built. Officer Wintruba identified [Appellant]
as the driver of the vehicle and Michael Watts as the left
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rear passenger. Officer Wintruba testified that after
[Appellant] exited the vehicle he then returned to the
driver’s door and appeared to be locking the door before
walking away again. Officer Wintruba testified that
because the other two men who were in the vehicle,
Duane Alston and Jeffdyn Rushton, were wearing similar
clothes and were similarly built he could not tell who had
been sitting in the right front seat and who had been in the
right rear seat. Officer Wintruba watched the four men
walk away and followed them in his vehicle until his
partner arrived.
At that point, Officer Wintruba approached the men and
asked to speak to them. He described them as
cooperative and informed them that he was investigating a
report of shots fired. He acknowledged that he was talking
to them in part to stall for time to allow additional backup
to arrive as only he and his partner were present. As he
began speaking to them he could smell an overwhelming
odor of green fresh marijuana. At that point he told them
that he believed they had marijuana in their possession
and he would have to check them. Officer Wintruba
testified he informed them that they were being detained
until he could determine where the marijuana was located
and each agreed to be patted down.
Trial Ct. Op., 6/24/13, at 2-4 (footnote and citations to the record omitted;
paragraphing added).
Officer Wintruba further testified, as follows:
Q. You said they were detained at that point, by that you
mean they were handcuffed?
A. They were handcuffed around then. . . . They weren’t
handcuffed when I said I smelled marijuana. At that point
I believe they were all handcuffed. Once again, there were
four of them and two of us. It came across the radio that
back-up wouldn’t be available for some time.
...
They would have been against the wall, and they were
very relaxed.
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Q. Did you tell them to go to the wall?
A. We were in that area, and I explained that since there
were two of us that we were going to have to handcuff
them.
N.T., 12/20/12, at 35-36. The trial court’s opinion continues:
[Officer Wintruba] also asked them for identification.
[Appellant] produced a Pennsylvania identification card
which, when checked, came back as showing [Appellant]
having his driving license suspended. [Appellant] was
asked if anyone else in the vehicle had a driver’s license
and [Appellant] then became very nervous and said he
would call his girlfriend to drive the car and then said he
would drive the car himself.
When Michael Watts was asked for identification he
could not produce any identification but instead identified
himself as Michael Dickerson and gave a date of birth.
When that information was checked and came back with
no record, Mr. Watts then became argumentative as the
officers tried to obtain more information regarding his
identity. It was then determined that he was wearing an
ankle bracelet with an electronic monitor on it at which
point he was placed in the rear of one of the police
vehicles. Alston produced identification and was released
from the scene. Rushton was searched and found in
possession of marijuana and was placed under arrest.
At that point Officer Wintruba told [Appellant] that his
vehicle would have to be towed as no one could drive the
vehicle and was asked if he would consent to it being
searched. [Appellant] denied having the keys but when
told that he was seen locking the driver’s door, [Appellant]
then said that he lost the keys and he couldn’t find them.
Trial Ct. Op., 6/24/13, at 4-5 (citations to the record omitted). Appellant
“was placed in” the police vehicle. N.T., 12/20/12, at 18. Officer Wintruba
“transported [Appellant] and Rushton in [his] police car less than a block
back to where the car was parked.” Id. The opinion continues:
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Officer Wintruba then approached the vehicle and looked
inside using the light from the nearby street light and saw
a handgun sitting on the floor boards of the right rear seat.
After seeing the gun[,] Officer Wintruba return to the
vehicle and asked [Appellant] and Rushton if they had ever
been arrested before and if they had ever been convicted
of felonies. Both said they had felony convictions and[,
after being asked by Officer Wintruba, “Are you guys
allowed to have any guns,” N.T., 12/20/12, at 19,]
acknowledged they were not allowed to possess firearms.
At that point Officer Wintruba returned to the vehicle and,
using his flashlight, looked through the passenger window
and saw the magazine and the butt of the handle of a
firearm projecting from underneath the front seat on the
driver’s side. He then opened the right rear door and
retrieved the handgun, a Ruger, from the floor in front of
the right rear seat and then went to the other side of the
vehicle and retrieved the second handgun, a Glock, from
under the driver’s seat. All four men were subsequently
arrested and charged with possession of firearms.
Based on the testimony of Officer Wintruba the Motion
to Suppress was denied. The case then immediately
proceeded to a nonjury trial and Officer Wintruba’s
testimony was incorporated as his trial testimony. On
cross examination Officer Wintruba acknowledged that Mr.
Watts was seated in the left rear passenger seat and that
the handgun was on the right center side of the vehicle.
He also acknowledged that he didn’t see any furtive
movement from any of the occupants of the vehicle
because they were slouched down so low he could only see
the tops of their heads. He also acknowledged that the
gun in the front of the car was directly under the front
seat.
Trial Ct. Op., 6/24/13, at 5 (citations to the record omitted).
After Officer Wintruba’s testimony, the Commonwealth moved into
evidence a certified conviction for possession with intent to deliver a
controlled substance and a certified firearms license form showing that
Appellant did not have a valid license to carry a firearm. Commonwealth
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Exs. 7-8; N.T., 12/20/12, at 74. The trial court admitted these exhibits
without objection by Appellant. Id.
Also relevant to Appellant’s PCRA contentions, the Commonwealth
stated the following during closing arguments:
They can’t be in the presence of a gun regardless of
whether it’s their gun or someone else’s gun. Because of
that, Your Honor, I feel we have met our burden beyond a
reasonable doubt, and I believe the presence of the guns
in plain view meets that burden of proof.
N.T., 12/20/12, at 88.
On December 20, 2012, following a bench trial, Appellant was found
guilty of the firearms charges and of driving while operating privileges are
suspended or revoked. Appellant was sentenced to four to eight years’
confinement.
Appellant filed a direct appeal challenging, among other things, that
the trial court should have suppressed the seized evidence because the
police lacked any basis to detain him and the inventory search of the vehicle
was invalid. This Court held that Appellant waived these two issues
because, instead of filing his own motion to suppress based on the facts and
arguments specific to him, he joined his co-defendant’s motion to suppress,
which was based on different facts and raised arguments peculiar to that co-
defendant. Commonwealth v. Fields, 94 WDA 2013, at 6 (Pa. Super.,
Nov. 12, 2013), appeal denied, No. 542 WAL 2013, 89 A.3d 660 (Pa.,
Apr. 4, 2014). Further, Appellant’s then-trial counsel also did not present
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any arguments or question any witness at the suppression hearing. Id.This Court addressed Appellant’s preserved challenge to the sufficiency of
the evidence and affirmed.
On July 1, 2014, Appellant filed a timely pro se PCRA petition.3 On
August 12, 2014, PCRA counsel entered his appearance for Appellant, and
on October 8, 2014, he filed an amended PCRA petition. After holding a
hearing, on January 12, 2016, the PCRA court denied Appellant’s PCRA
petition. Appellant timely appealed on February 11, 2016.
On November 29, 2016, PCRA counsel filed a Turner/Finley letter and
brief with this Court, along with a motion to withdraw as counsel. Appellant
did not file a pro se or counseled response to the Turner/Finley letter.
In his Turner/Finley brief, PCRA counsel raises the following
appellate issues on Appellant’s behalf:
1. Whether trial counsel gave ineffective assistance for
failing to properly raise the claim that the statement by
Appellant should have been suppressed pursuant to
Miranda v. Arizona[, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)]?
2. Whether trial counsel gave ineffective assistance for
failing to properly argue that the evidence should be
suppressed in violation of Article 1, Section 8 of the
____________________________________________
3
Appellant’s judgment of sentence became final on July 3, 2014, when the
90-day time period for filing an appeal to the United States Supreme Court
expired. See U.S. Sup. Ct. R. 13; 42 Pa.C.S. § 9545(b)(3). His PCRA
petition hence was timely, and this Court therefore has jurisdiction over the
appeal from his petition. See 42 Pa.C.S. § 9545(b)(1) (petition must be
filed no later than one year after judgment of sentence became final);
Commonwealth v. Hernandez, 79 A.3d 649, 651 (Pa. Super. 2013).
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Pennsylvania Constitution and the Fourth Amendment
when Appellant was subject to an illegal arrest?
3. Whether trial counsel gave ineffective assistance for
failing to properly argue that the evidence should be
suppressed in violation of Article 1, Section 8 of the
Pennsylvania Constitution and the Fourth Amendment
when police illegally seized Appellant’s vehicle?
4. Whether trial counsel gave ineffective assistance for
failing to object to prosecutor’s argument that the
Commonwealth was not required to prove possession or
constructive possession?
Turner/Finley Brief at 7.
Our standard of review of a PCRA court’s denial of a PCRA petition is
limited to examining whether the PCRA court’s determination is supported by
the record evidence and free of legal error. Commonwealth v. Wilson,
824 A.2d 331, 333 (Pa. Super. 2003) (en banc). Before we review
Appellant’s claim, however, we must ascertain whether PCRA counsel
satisfied the requirements to withdraw:
The Turner/Finley decisions provide the manner for post-
conviction counsel to withdraw from representation. The
holdings of those cases mandate an independent review of
the record by competent counsel before a PCRA court or
appellate court can authorize an attorney’s withdrawal.
The necessary independent review requires counsel to file
a “no-merit” letter detailing the nature and extent of his
review and list each issue the petitioner wishes to have
examined, explaining why those issues are meritless. The
PCRA court, or an appellate court if the no-merit letter is
filed before it, see Turner, supra, then must conduct its
own independent evaluation of the record and agree with
counsel that the petition is without merit. See
[Commonwealth v.] Pitts[, 603 Pa. 1, 3 n.1, 981 A.2d
875, 876 n.1 (2009)].
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In Commonwealth v. Friend, 896 A.2d 607 (Pa.
Super. 2006)[,] abrogated in part by Pitts, supra, this
Court imposed additional requirements on counsel that
closely track the procedure for withdrawing on direct
appeal. Pursuant to Friend, counsel is required to
contemporaneously serve upon his client his no-merit
letter and application to withdraw along with a statement
that if the court granted counsel’s withdrawal request, the
client may proceed pro se or with a privately retained
attorney. Though Chief Justice Castille noted in Pitts that
this Court is not authorized to craft procedural rules, the
Court did not overturn this aspect of Friend as those
prerequisites did not apply to the petitioner
in Pitts. See Pitts, supra at 881 (Castille, C.J.,
concurring).
After the decision in Pitts, this Court held
in Commonwealth v. Widgins, 29 A.3d 816 (Pa. Super.
2011), that the additional procedural requirements of
Friend were still applicable during collateral review.
Commonwealth v. Freeland, 106 A.3d 768, 774-75 (Pa. Super. 2014).
Here, we conclude that PCRA counsel’s Turner/Finley no-merit letter
complies with all of these requirements. See Freeland, 106 A.3d at 774-
75. Accordingly, we conduct our own independent evaluation of the record
to ascertain whether we agree with PCRA counsel that Appellant is not
entitled to relief. See id.
All four issues raised by Appellant are claims of ineffective assistance
of counsel. To obtain relief under the PCRA premised on a claim that
counsel was ineffective, a petitioner must demonstrate the following: (1)
the underlying claim is of arguable merit; (2) counsel had no reasonable
strategic basis for his or her action or inaction; and (3) petitioner was
prejudiced by counsel’s act or omission. See Commonwealth v. Pierce,
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527 A.2d 973, 975 (Pa. 1987). In this context, a finding of “prejudice”
requires the petitioner to show “there is a reasonable probability that, but
for the error of counsel, the outcome of the proceeding would have been
different.” Commonwealth v. Stevens, 739 A.2d 507, 512 (Pa. 1999);
see also Commonwealth v. Simpson, 66 A.3d 253, 260 (Pa. 2013) (“the
petitioner was prejudiced — that is, but for counsel’s deficient stewardship,
there is a reasonable likelihood the outcome of the proceedings would have
been different”). “If a petitioner fails to prove any of these prongs, his claim
fails.” Id. Where “the underlying claim is meritless, the derivative claim of
ineffective assistance of counsel for failing to object has no arguable merit.”
Commonwealth v. Spotz, 47 A.3d 63, 122 (Pa. 2012). “[C]ounsel cannot
be considered ineffective for failing to pursue a meritless claim.”
Commonwealth v. Lopez, 739 A.2d 485, 495 (Pa. 1999), cert. denied,
530 U.S. 1206 (2000).
We first address the merits of Appellant’s claim that he was improperly
interrogated in violation of Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).
Turner/Finley Brief at 8-12. Specifically, PCRA counsel challenges Officer
Wintruba’s inquiries about Appellant’s prior arrests, prior felony convictions,
and ability to own firearms, while Appellant was handcuffed and after he had
been patted down by police. Turner/Finley Brief at 11; see also N.T.,
12/20/12, at 19, 35-36; Trial Ct. Op., 6/24/13, at 4-5. PCRA counsel
alleges that this claim had merit, but “[a]t the trial, the Commonwealth
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presented a stipulation that Appellant had been convicted of possession with
the intent to deliver, a felony, which would bar him from possessing a
firearm. Therefore, Appellant cannot prove actual prejudice.”
Turner/Finley Brief at 12.
We are unable to locate in the notes of testimony the “stipulation”
referenced by counsel, but those notes do show that Appellant’s certified
conviction for possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and a
certified firearms license form showing that Appellant did not have a valid
license to carry a firearm were both moved into evidence by the
Commonwealth and admitted by the trial court without objection by
Appellant. See Commonwealth Exs. 7-8; N.T., 12/20/12, at 74. In light of
this evidence, Appellant could not prove prejudice.
In addition, we conclude that Appellant’s Miranda argument lacks
arguable merit. “In a Terry stop,[4] the officer may ask the detainee a
moderate number of questions to determine his identity and to try to obtain
information confirming or dispelling the officer’s suspicions.”
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4
A “Terry stop” is “[a]n investigative detention [that] occurs when a police
officer temporarily detains an individual by means of physical force or a
show of authority for investigative purposes.” Commonwealth v. Barber,
889 A.2d 587, 592 (Pa. Super. 2005). “Such a detention constitutes a
seizure of a person and thus activates the protections of the Fourth
Amendment and the requirements of Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S.Ct.
1868, 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968).” Barber, 889 A.2d at 592. It must be
supported by “reasonable suspicion that the person seized is then engaged
in unlawful activity.” Id. at 593.
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Commonwealth v. Chase, 960 A.2d 108, 120 (Pa. 2008) (citation and
internal quotation marks omitted). Thus, the simple act of a police officer
stopping an individual and asking him or her for basic biographical
information is permissible. See id. More in-depth interrogation, however,
requires a deeper analysis:
It is a fundamental precept of constitutional law that a
suspect subject to a custodial interrogation by police must
be warned that he has the right to remain silent, that
anything he says may be used against him in court, and
that he is entitled to the presence of an attorney.
Miranda, 384 U.S. at 469, 86 S.Ct. 1602. If an individual
is not advised of those rights prior to a custodial
interrogation, any evidence obtained through the
interrogation is inadmissible at trial. In re K.Q.M., 873
A.2d 752, 755 (Pa.Super.2005). The Miranda safeguards
are triggered “whenever a person in custody is subjected
to either express questioning or its functional equivalent.”
Rhode Island v. Innis, 446 U.S. 291, 292, 100 S.Ct.
1682, 64 L.Ed.2d 297 (1980) . . . (defining interrogation to
include express questioning and its functional equivalent).
Commonwealth v. Freeman, 128 A.3d 1231, 1240 (Pa. Super. 2015).
In Commonwealth v. Rosas, 875 A.2d 341, 348 (Pa. Super. 2005),
appeal denied, 897 A.2d 456 (Pa. 2006), we held that, “for their safety,
police officers may handcuff individuals during an investigative detention.”
In Commonwealth v. Guillespie, 745 A.2d 654, 660–61 (Pa. Super.
2000), we determined that the act of handcuffing suspects during an
investigatory detention “was merely part and parcel of ensuring the safe
detaining of the individuals during the lawful Terry stop,” and we could not
“find that the officer’s detention of Guillespie and the fact that he was placed
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in handcuffs immediately rose to the level of an unwarranted custodial
detention.”
In Commonwealth v. Pakacki, 901 A.2d 983, 988 (Pa. 2006), a
police officer conducted a pat-down and “felt an object in the defendant’s left
front pants pocket; he asked what it was, and the defendant responded it
was ‘chronic,’ which the officer knew to be a street term for marijuana.” The
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that this pat-down search was not the
functional equivalent of an arrest and that pat-down searches do not place a
suspect in custody for Miranda purposes.
In Commonwealth v. Revere, 888 A.2d 694 (Pa. 2005), the
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania was “persuaded that a hard and fast rule
that would equate placing a suspect in a police vehicle and transporting him
with an arrest requiring probable cause, in all instances, would be an
arbitrarily crabbed view of Terry.” Id. at 706 (footnote omitted). “[T]here
is no hard and fast rule which prohibits the movement of suspects during the
course of an investigative detention.” Id. at 703-04.
Instantly, we focus our discussion upon whether Appellant was “in
custody” for Miranda purposes at the time of his statement. According to
Officer Wintruba, he handcuffed the suspects because there were four
suspects and only two officers, as back-up would not be available for some
time. N.T., 12/20/12, at 35. They were also in a high-crime area, late at
night. Trial Ct. Op., 6/24/13, at 2-3.
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Since being handcuffed for purposes of officers’ safety, being patted
down, and being transported are insufficient to establish that a defendant
was in custody at the time that he was questioned by police, we hold that
Appellant was not in custody so as to require Miranda warnings. See
Pakacki, 91 A.2d at 988; Revere, 888 A.2d at 703-04, 706; Rosas, 875
A.2d at 348; Guillespie, 745 A.2d at 660–61. Accordingly, his Miranda
challenge is meritless, and “counsel cannot be considered ineffective for
failing to pursue a meritless claim.” Lopez, 739 A.2d at 495. Thus, we
disagree with PCRA counsel’s contention that Appellant’s underlying
Miranda claim had merit.
Appellant’s next claims that trial counsel gave ineffective assistance for
failing to argue that evidence stemming from Appellant’s allegedly illegal
arrest should be suppressed. Turner/Finley Brief at 12-13. According to
Appellant, this “illegal arrest” occurred when Appellant was detained “to
determine who had the marijuana,” handcuffed, and subjected to a “‘pat
down’ search.” Id. (citing N.T., 12/20/12, at 35-36). For the reasons
explained above, Appellant was neither in custody nor arrested at this time.
See Pakacki, 91 A.2d at 988; Revere, 888 A.2d at 703-04, 706; Rosas,
875 A.2d at 348; Guillespie, 745 A.2d at 660–61. Thus, Appellant’s illegal
arrest claim is meritless, as is his derivative ineffective assistance of counsel
claim. Lopez, 739 A.2d at 495.
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Appellant further claims that trial counsel gave ineffective assistance
by not properly arguing that evidence stemming from Appellant’s motor
vehicle search – specifically, the firearm – should be suppressed.
Turner/Finley Brief at 13-14.
Our review of the record discloses that in Appellant’s direct appeal,
trial counsel did argue that the search of Appellant’s vehicle and the seizure
of the handguns within it were invalid and that the firearms should thus be
suppressed. Trial Ct. Op., 6/24/13, at 2. Appellant’s PCRA claim on this
issue therefore is without merit. In addition, after a thorough review of the
record, the briefs of the parties, the applicable law, and the well-reasoned
direct appeal opinion of the Honorable Randal B. Todd dated June 24, 2013,
we conclude that no relief is due on this issue because there was no proper
basis for suppression. See Trial Ct. Op., 6/24/13, at 11-13 (finding:
pursuant to Commonwealth v. Liddie, 21 A.3d 229, 233-34, 236 (Pa.
Super. 2011) (en banc), that a warrantless search of a vehicle is justified
and the evidence seized therefrom should not be suppressed when the
officer observed the vehicle from a lawful vantage point, the incriminating
nature of the evidence was immediately apparent, and probable cause arose
suddenly and without any advance warning that the defendant or his vehicle
would be the target of an investigation; here, the testimony demonstrated
that the firearms were in plain view when Officer Wintruba approached the
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vehicle and were seized pursuant to this limited exception). 5 Accordingly,
with respect to Appellant’s third issue raised in this current appeal, we affirm
on the basis of the trial court’s direct appeal opinion.
Finally, Appellant claims that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to
object to the Commonwealth’s closing argument, alleging that the
Commonwealth had improperly stated the law about possession. To prove
ineffective assistance of counsel, a petitioner must show that he was
prejudiced by counsel’s act or omission. Pierce, 527 A.2d at 975. In
Commonwealth v. McFadden, 156 A.3d 299, 309 (Pa. Super. 2017), we
wrote, “This was a bench trial, and a trial court acting as the fact-finder is
presumed to know the law, ignore prejudicial statements, and disregard
inadmissible evidence” (emphasis added; citation and internal quotation
marks omitted). Appellant had a non-jury trial; thus, in the current action,
the trial court is also presumed to have known the law and to have ignored
any inaccurate statements about the law made by either counsel. See id.Hence, Appellant has failed to demonstrate prejudice and, therefore, cannot
establish ineffective assistance of counsel. See Pierce, 527 A.2d at 975.
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5
On direct appeal, this Court held that Appellant’s challenge to the trial
court’s failure to suppress evidence that Appellant claimed was the fruit of
illegal searches and seizures was waived. Fields, 94 WDA 2013, at 5. The
trial court’s analysis of this claim nevertheless is applicable to the
substantive issue underlying Appellant’s third ineffective assistance of
counsel challenge for the instant collateral appeal.
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For the reasons stated above, we affirm the PCRA court’s order.
Because, for Appellant’s third issue on appeal, we affirm partly on the basis
of the trial court’s opinion of June 24, 2013, the parties are instructed to
attach a copy of the trial court’s opinion of June 24, 2013, to all future
filings. We also grant PCRA counsel’s petition to withdraw.
Petition to withdraw granted. Order affirmed.
Judgment Entered.
Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary
Date: 5/19/2017
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