Com. v. Collins, R.
2522 EDA 2016
Pa. Super. Ct.Sep 8, 2017Background
- In Jan. 2006, several men allegedly fired shots at a car in North Philadelphia; a child (Jabar) was shot and paralyzed. No weapon was recovered; casings indicated multiple guns/calibers.
- Raheem Collins was tried jointly with co-defendants, convicted by jury of attempted homicide, multiple aggravated assaults, conspiracy, and a violation of the VUFA firearms statute; sentenced to an aggregate 62½ to 125 years.
- Collins pursued direct appeal (denied), then filed a counseled PCRA petition and later proceeded pro se on additional claims; PCRA court issued Rule 907 notice and ultimately dismissed the petition on June 3, 2016.
- Collins raised ineffective-assistance claims: (1) counsel failed to object to the trial court’s decision not to give a Spencer deadlock instruction after the jury initially reported being deadlocked; (2) counsel failed to move to quash allegedly defective bills of information; and (3) counsel failed to object to an amended information restoring a felony VUFA charge (18 Pa.C.S. § 6106), plus a claim the written sentence mistakenly referenced the misdemeanor provision § 6108.
- The PCRA court dismissed the claims; this Court affirmed the dismissal but remanded to correct a clerical error in the written judgment to reflect conviction under § 6106 rather than § 6108.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Collins) | Defendant's Argument (Commonwealth / PCRA court) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Failure to request/object to Spencer instruction | Trial counsel was ineffective for not renewing objection when the court declined to give Spencer after an initial deadlock report | Jury later resumed deliberations; counsel initially asked for Spencer and court planned to give it but foreperson later said jury was deliberating — no coercion | No merit; counsel not ineffective because jury had resumed deliberations and no coerced verdict shown |
| 2. Failure to move to quash defective informations | Bills lacked particulars, victim ID, and Commonwealth signature; counsel should have moved to quash | Issue waived (not raised properly in PCRA); PCRA record shows appellant only raised subject-matter jurisdiction earlier | Waived on appeal; ineffective-assistance claim not considered |
| 3. Trial on uncharged firearms offense / failure to object to amendment | Counsel ineffective for allowing conviction/sentence on an offense not charged (claimed § 6106 vs § 6108 confusion) | Record shows § 6106 was charged, tried, and the jury convicted on § 6106; written sentence mistakenly lists § 6108 — amendment/charge did not prejudice defendant | No prejudice shown; counsel not ineffective; clerical error in written judgment to be corrected to § 6106 |
| 4. Relief / clerical correction of sentencing entry | Collins sought correction of sentence to reflect felony § 6106 conviction | Commonwealth agreed clerical error existed and asked court to modify written judgment without changing sentence | Court ordered remand to PCRA court to correct written judgment from § 6108 to § 6106 without altering sentence |
Key Cases Cited
- Commonwealth v. Mason, 130 A.3d 601 (Pa. 2015) (sets out Strickland/Pierce ineffective-assistance test)
- Commonwealth v. Spotz, 18 A.3d 244 (Pa. 2011) (standard of review for PCRA courts)
- Commonwealth v. Porter, 446 A.2d 605 (Pa. 1982) (trial court discretion re: Spencer instruction)
- Commonwealth v. Spencer, 275 A.2d 299 (Pa. 1971) (Spencer charge described for deadlocked juries)
- Commonwealth v. Greer, 951 A.2d 346 (Pa. 2008) (discusses Spencer instruction applicability)
- Commonwealth v. Veon, 109 A.3d 754 (Pa. Super. 2015) (factors for prejudice analysis when information is amended)
- Commonwealth v. Witmayer, 144 A.3d 939 (Pa. Super. 2016) (no prejudice where amendment involves no new facts and does not affect defense)
- Commonwealth v. Young, 695 A.2d 414 (Pa. Super. 1997) (authority to correct clerical errors in judgment of sentence)