304 A.3d 782
Pa. Super. Ct.2023Background
- Police stopped a vehicle on November 10, 2020, and observed a loaded .380 Walther handgun in Patterson’s hoodie pocket; he was arrested.
- Patterson was prohibited from possessing firearms because of a 2018 first‑degree robbery conviction.
- He was charged with 18 Pa.C.S. § 6105 (possession of firearms prohibited), § 6106 (carrying without a license), and § 6108 (carrying in public in Philadelphia).
- Patterson entered an open guilty plea to the charges; the presentence investigator assigned a Prior Record Score (PRS) of 5 based on the 2018 robbery.
- Defense argued at sentencing that counting the robbery both as a prerequisite for § 6105 and in the PRS amounted to impermissible “double counting” under Sentencing Guideline § 303.8(g)(3). The court rejected the argument and imposed 4–8 years for § 6105.
- Patterson appealed, raising the claim that inclusion of the 2018 robbery in the PRS was barred because it was effectively a material element of the § 6105 offense.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether counting Patterson’s 2018 robbery conviction in the Prior Record Score violated Sentencing Guideline § 303.8(g)(3) by double‑counting a conviction that is a material element of a § 6105 offense | Patterson: the robbery is a material element/prerequisite that made his possession a felony, so including it in the PRS double counts and is barred by § 303.8(g)(3) | Commonwealth/Trial Court: the prior conviction is a precondition to charging under § 6105 (not an element for grading), and in any event it did not change the statutory grade of the offense | Affirmed: Court follows Commonwealth v. Keiper — the prior conviction is a prerequisite, not a grading element, so its inclusion in the PRS is not impermissible double counting; even if treated as an element, the prior did not alter the statutory grading (grading turned on actual possession), so sentence upheld |
Key Cases Cited
- Commonwealth v. Keiper, 887 A.2d 317 (Pa. Super. 2005) (holding a prior enumerated conviction is a precondition to a § 6105 charge and may be counted in the PRS without double counting)
- Commonwealth v. Johnson, 758 A.2d 1214 (Pa. Super. 2000) (explaining § 303.8(g)(3) prevents counting priors that increase statutory grading of a later offense)
- Commonwealth v. Jamison, 98 A.3d 1254 (Pa. 2014) (addressed elements of § 6105 in a different context; court here explains Jamison did not decide the sentencing‑guidelines question)
- Commonwealth v. Spenny, 128 A.3d 234 (Pa. Super. 2015) (discussing discretionary‑aspect‑of‑sentence standards and preservation requirements)