Com. v. Braswell, E.
Com. v. Braswell, E. No. 86 WDA 2017
| Pa. Super. Ct. | Aug 8, 2017Background
- Elwood C. Braswell was convicted by jury of criminal homicide, aggravated assault, and abuse of a corpse for killing his cellmate at SCI Forest; jury returned verdicts of guilty but mentally ill.
- Trial court sentenced Braswell to life without parole plus consecutive terms; Braswell did not file post-sentence motions or a direct appeal.
- Braswell filed a pro se PCRA petition alleging ineffective assistance of trial counsel, later seeking reinstatement of direct-appeal rights nunc pro tunc.
- Appointed PCRA counsel filed an amended petition abandoning the weight-of-the-evidence/insanity claim; the PCRA court reinstated Braswell’s direct-appeal rights but did not reinstate post-sentence motion rights.
- On appeal nunc pro tunc, Braswell argued the jury’s rejection of his insanity defense was against the weight of the evidence; the Superior Court held the claim waived because it was never preserved in the trial court via post-sentence motion.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the jury’s rejection of insanity was against the weight of the evidence | Braswell: evidence showed he was not conscious of wrongdoing and met the preponderance standard for insanity, so verdict was against the weight of the evidence | Commonwealth/PCRA: claim was not preserved in trial court; PCRA counsel abandoned the weight claim; only direct-appeal rights were reinstated | Waived—court affirmed because weight claim must be raised before sentencing or in a post-sentence motion and was not preserved |
Key Cases Cited
- Commonwealth v. Sherwood, 982 A.2d 483 (Pa. 2009) (weight claims must be preserved by motion in trial court)
- Commonwealth v. Liston, 977 A.2d 1089 (Pa. 2009) (reinstating direct appeal nunc pro tunc does not automatically reinstate post-sentence motion rights)
- Commonwealth v. Fransen, 986 A.2d 154 (Pa. Super. 2009) (denial of nunc pro tunc reinstatement of post-sentence motion rights where not requested)
- Commonwealth v. Thompson, 93 A.3d 478 (Pa. Super. 2014) (reaffirming preservation rule for weight claims)
- Commonwealth v. Karanicolas, 836 A.2d 940 (Pa. Super. 2003) (procedural note on treating subsequent PCRA as first when direct appeal nunc pro tunc is granted)