J-A03032-16
NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
PENNSYLVANIA
Appellee
v.
JUSTIN E. WATTS
Appellant No. 1243 EDA 2015
Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence April 14, 2015
In the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County
Criminal Division at No(s): CP-39-SA-0000307-2014
BEFORE: GANTMAN, P.J., MUNDY, J., and DUBOW, J.
JUDGMENT ORDER BY GANTMAN, P.J.: FILED JANUARY 12, 2016
Appellant, Justin E. Watts, appeals pro se from the judgment of
sentence entered in the Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas, following his
summary conviction for driving while operating privilege is suspended or
revoked, per 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 1543(b)(1). On May 23, 2014, police issued
Appellant a citation for driving with a suspended license. A magistrate
convicted Appellant of the offense on October 24, 2014, and sentenced him
to 60 days’ imprisonment, plus a fine. On November 21, 2014, Appellant
timely filed a summary appeal for a trial de novo. The court held a de novo
hearing on April 14, 2015, after which the court convicted Appellant of
driving with a suspended license. The court sentenced Appellant to 60 days’
house arrest and imposed a $500.00 fine. Appellant timely filed a pro se
notice of appeal on April 30, 2015. On May 7, 2015, the court ordered
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Appellant to file a Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b) concise statement. Appellant complied
on May 18, 2015.
Initially, we recognize:
[A]ppellate briefs and reproduced records must materially
conform to the requirements of the Pennsylvania Rules of
Appellate Procedure. This Court may quash or dismiss an
appeal if the appellant fails to conform to the requirements
set forth in the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure.
Although this Court is willing to liberally construe materials
filed by a pro se litigant, pro se status confers no special
benefit upon the appellant. To the contrary, any person
choosing to represent himself in a legal proceeding must,
to a reasonable extent, assume that his lack of expertise
and legal training will be his undoing.
Commonwealth v. Adams, 882 A.2d 496, 497-98 (Pa.Super. 2005)
(internal citations omitted). See also Pa.R.A.P. 2114-2119 (addressing
specific requirements of each subsection of brief on appeal).
Instantly, Appellant’s “brief” is approximately one page and is woefully
inadequate. Appellant’s brief fails to include the necessary statement of
jurisdiction, relevant scope and standard of review, statement of the case,
summary of the argument, and omits any argument section. See Pa.R.A.P.
2111(a) (discussing required content of appellate briefs). Appellant also did
not append to his brief a copy of his Rule 1925(b) statement. See id.
Essentially, Appellant insists his conviction is constitutionally infirm because
he was “traveling,” as opposed to driving, at the time of the stop. Appellant
also purports to challenge the validity of the traffic stop. Nevertheless,
Appellant provides no cogent legal arguments, evidence, or authority to
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support his claims.1 See Pa.R.A.P. 2119(a) (stating argument shall be
divided into as many sections as there are questions presented, followed by
discussion with citation to relevant legal authority). These substantial
defects preclude meaningful review, warranting suppression of Appellant’s
brief and dismissal of the appeal. See Adams, supra; Pa.R.A.P. 2101.
Accordingly, we suppress Appellant’s brief and dismiss his appeal.
Appeal dismissed. Case is stricken from the argument list.
Judgment Entered.
Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary
Date: 1/12/2016
____________________________________________
1
In his reproduced record, Appellant includes an article called: “Driver
Licensing vs. Right to Travel,” available at
http://www.lawfulpath.com/ref/DLbrief.shtml. Regardless of whether
Appellant presented this article before the trial court or attempts to use it as
legal authority on appeal, his inclusion of the article in his reproduced record
does not cure his failure to advance cogent legal arguments on appeal with
citation to relevant legal authority.
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