Com. v. Layton, D., Com. v. Layton, D. No. 1879 EDA 2016

In December 2004 police received CI information and conducted a controlled buy identifying Damian Layton and others as selling cocaine at 2405 Peoples Street, Chester.
On April 1, 2005 police executed a search warrant; officers observed Layton and co-defendant Byrd attempting to flush a bag in a toilet; cocaine residue and odor were found; both were arrested.
Layton was convicted after a bench trial of possession, possession with intent to deliver, possession of paraphernalia, and conspiracy; sentenced to 54–108 months; this Court affirmed in 2009 and the PA Supreme Court denied allowance of appeal in 2010.
Layton filed multiple PCRA petitions. He filed the instant (second) pro se PCRA petition in October 2014 alleging ineffective assistance for failure to convey a plea offer; counsel was later appointed and an amended petition was filed.
The PCRA court held an evidentiary hearing, received testimony and a stipulation that trial counsel conveyed a plea offer to Layton; the court found the testimony credible and denied the petition as untimely because the timeliness exception was not proven.
The Superior Court affirmed, holding that because the PCRA court credibly found the plea offer was conveyed well before Layton’s claimed discovery date, the court lacked jurisdiction to reach the petition’s merits.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (Layton)	Defendant's Argument (Commonwealth / Trial Court)	Held
Whether PCRA court erred by denying amended PCRA petition alleging IAC for failing to convey plea offer	Layton: trial counsel did not convey a plea offer to him before trial; he only learned of the offer in April 2013, so his petition is timely under the unknown-fact exception	Commonwealth/Trial Ct: evidence (witness testimony and stipulation) shows counsel did convey the offer earlier; Layton’s petition is facially untimely and he failed to prove the exception	Court held PCRA court’s credibility findings credible; Layton failed to prove timeliness exception, so court lacked jurisdiction to reach merits; denial affirmed

Commonwealth v. Spotz, 18 A.3d 244 (Pa. 2011) (PCRA credibility findings are binding when supported by the record)
Commonwealth v. Johnson, 966 A.2d 523 (Pa. 2009) (standards for reviewing PCRA rulings and counsel effectiveness precedents)
Commonwealth v. Marshall, 947 A.2d 714 (Pa. 2008) (PCRA principles related to timeliness and exceptions)
Commonwealth v. Turner, 544 A.2d 927 (Pa. 1988) (procedures for counsel withdrawal in PCRA proceedings)
Commonwealth v. Finley, 550 A.2d 213 (Pa. Super. 1988) (procedures for counsel withdrawal in PCRA proceedings)
United States v. Alleyne, 133 S.Ct. 2151 (2013) (rule regarding facts that increase mandatory minimums; cited re: proposed Alleyne claim)
Commonwealth v. Lark, 746 A.2d 585 (Pa. 2000) (tolling/filing constraints when prior collateral petition is pending)