J-A22043-16
NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
PENNSYLVANIA
Appellee
v.
CANDELARIO SANCHEZ
Appellant No. 2028 MDA 2015
Appeal from the PCRA Order April 24, 2014
In the Court of Common Pleas of York County
Criminal Division at No(s): CP-67-CR-0001621-2006
BEFORE: GANTMAN, P.J., PANELLA, J., and JENKINS, J.
MEMORANDUM BY GANTMAN, P.J.: FILED OCTOBER 06, 2016
Appellant, Candelario Sanchez, appeals from the order entered in the
York County Court of Common Pleas, which denied his serial petition filed
under the Post Conviction Relief Act (“PCRA”) at 42 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 9541-9546.
We affirm.
The relevant facts and procedural history of this appeal are as follows.
On December 14, 2005, officers were conducting a
controlled buy in which the target was Santos Ramos-
Rodriguez, [Appellant’s] co-defendant. When Ramos-
Rodriguez arrived at the buy location, Appellant was
seated in the passenger seat of the vehicle. However, at
this time officers did not even know the name of the
individual sitting in the passenger seat. After the buy,
both Ramos-Rodriguez and Appellant were arrested and
searched.
The search of the vehicle and Ramos-Rodriguez yielded the
following: a black baggie; one baggie of cocaine; a black
wallet; a Timex Expedition watch; black gloves; a cell
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phone; and $477 in cash. Appellant was found with a
black wallet, keys with a container containing two blue
pills, two orange pills, and one white pill, and two sets of
keys. Although Trooper Keppel initially testified that all of
the key rings were in Appellant’s possession, he clarified
that one set of keys was found on Appellant, and the other
two sets were found in the vehicle. Nevertheless, he then
testified that the keys were found next to Appellant in the
vehicle. However, this is not consistent with the evidence
log which says [the] keys and attached container came
from Appellant, but does not indicate who had the other
two sets of keys. Furthermore, when Corporal
Fenstermacher was called by the defense to testify, he
stated that only one set of keys was recovered from
Appellant, and the other two sets were found in the
vehicle. Corporal Fenstermacher opined that these sets of
keys belonged to Ramos-Rodriguez since he owned the
vehicle.
Using all three keys, officers were able to open three
residences: one at 32 North Queen Street, one [at] 314
Reinecke Place, and one at 626 Chestnut Street. However,
Corporal Fenstermacher could not recall which keys
opened which apartments; all he could say was that a
combination of the keys opened all three.
Officers determined that Ramos-Rodriguez lived at 32 N.
Queen Street based on prior surveillance and items found
inside the apartment. After executing the search warrant,
officers found the following items: one baggie of cocaine;
mail [addressed] to Ramos-Rodriguez; a strainer with
residue; a roll of tinfoil; two packets of rolling paper; one
plastic baggie; two plastic bags of heroin; a marijuana
cigarette; a driver’s license belonging to Ramos-Rodriguez;
two cell phones; assorted mail; $1,250 in cash; a napkin
with the address 802 Maryland Avenue written on it; a
bank deposit slip; a check; a social security card with
Ramos-Rodriguez’s name on it; $21,554 in cash in the
bathroom closet; Viagra pills; and a brown paper bag.
During their investigation, officers determined that the
residence at 314 Reinecke Place was being rented out by
Appellant. The following items were found: latex gloves; a
box of face masks; a box of sandwich bags; a roll of duct
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tape; a brown paper bag containing a baggie with a ripped
corner; a pair of scissors; a newspaper with handwritten
numbers; a Columbia Gas bill in the name of Ramos-
Rodriguez dated November 30, 2005; mail addressed to
Appellant at 324 Harding Court; a bag of white powder; a
Black & Decker coffee grinder; and assorted mail
addressed to various individuals. Corporal Fenstermacher
testified that, in his opinion, these items coupled with the
drugs and money found at the other two locations was
indicative of a large scale drug operation.
The white powder that was found at 314 Reinecke Place
was not a controlled substance; although, Corporal
Fenstermacher speculated that the powder could have
been used to dilute cocaine for packaging purposes.
However, there was no testimony as to what the white
powder actually was.
Finally, the following items were found at 626 Chestnut
Street: a cell phone; four plastic bags containing heroin;
three bricks of cocaine; another bag containing smaller
bags of cocaine and heroin; a bag of packaging materials;
sifters and spoons; a digital scale; sandwich bags; a coffee
grinder; 150 orange pills; a box of ammunition; a delivery
notice addressed to Ramos-Rodriguez; photographs; mail
addressed to Appellant; paper towels; boxes of plastic
bags; paperwork; another cell phone; a brown safe; two
backpacks; and a firearm. Police found medical paperwork
for Appellant in a dresser drawer, and also a bunch of
pictures of Appellant and Ramos-Rodriguez.
Corporal Fenstermacher testified that in total 3,686 grams
of cocaine [were] found, which equates to about
$368,000.00. A total of 1,583 grams of heroin [were]
found, which equates to just a little over $1,000,000.00.
Finally, the pills that were found were tested and
determined to be morphine.
Milgras Guilb, office manager of Quality Management
Incorporated, testified that Ramos-Rodriguez rented two
properties from her—314 Reinecke Place and 626 Chestnut
Street. After Ramos-Rodriguez’s lease was up, Appellant
began renting the apartment at 314 Reinecke Place on
September 1, 2005.
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Appellant was arrested on December 14, 2005, and
charged with two counts of possession with intent to
deliver; two counts of criminal conspiracy; one count of
persons not to possess firearms; and one count of
receiving stolen property. Following his arrest, a
preliminary hearing was held on March 1, 2006, and he
was arraigned on April 7, 2006. One count of criminal
conspiracy was withdrawn along with the charge of
receiving stolen property.
On May 8, 2006, Appellant, through counsel, filed an
omnibus pretrial motion seeking severance of Appellant’s
case from Ramos-Rodriguez’s case. A hearing was held on
May 30, 2006, and the severance was denied. …
Testimony was heard on July 3 [and] July 5-6, and the
jury returned a guilty verdict on July 7, 2006.
On August 21, 2006, Appellant was sentenced to 25 years
to 50 years’ imprisonment in a state correctional
institution. On September 20, 2006, Appellant [timely
filed a] notice of appeal to the Superior Court. [The trial
court] directed him to file his [Pa.R.A.P.] 1925(b)
statement, which he did on October 31, 2006. Appellate
counsel failed to file a brief with the Superior Court, and
the appeal was dismissed on May 17, 2007.
Appellant filed his first pro se PCRA petition on July 9,
2007. Lori A. Yost, Esquire was appointed to represent
Appellant. On October 30, 2007, Appellant’s appeal rights
were reinstated. On November 8, 2007, Appellant,
through counsel, filed a motion to modify sentence. That
motion was denied on December 3, 2007.
On December 27, 2007, Attorney Yost filed a notice of
appeal to the Superior Court on Appellant’s behalf. The
Superior Court affirmed Appellant’s judgment of [sentence]
in a non-precedential opinion filed on March 24, 2009, and
docketed to 2194 MDA 2007. The issues raised on direct
appeal were: 1) the denial of the motion to sever the
trials; 2) a comment made by the district attorney about
Appellant not testifying; 3) sufficiency of the evidence; 4)
jury instructions; and 5) sentencing. The Pennsylvania
Supreme Court denied Appellant’s petition for allowance of
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appeal on October 28, 2009. The U.S. Supreme Court also
denied a writ of certiorari [on March 22, 2010].
Appellant timely filed his second[1] PCRA petition on March
18, 2011, and [the PCRA court] reappointed Attorney Yost
to represent him on this petition. [The court] scheduled a
hearing for July 26, 2011. On June 9, 2011, Appellant,
through counsel, filed an amended PCRA petition.
The amended PCRA petition raised the following issues: 1)
Was trial counsel ineffective for failing to employ an expert
in drug packaging and processing and/or ineffective in his
cross-examination of the Commonwealth’s expert? 2) Was
trial counsel ineffective for failing to file a pretrial motion
seeking suppression of the evidence found at 314 Reinecke
Place? 3) Was trial counsel ineffective in his cross
examination of [Appellant’s] co-defendant Santos Ramos-
Rodriguez? 4) Was trial counsel ineffective for failing to
object to the testimony of the Pennsylvania State Police
Crime Lab Supervisor where the analyses in this case were
completed by another lab technician who did not testify?
At the July 26th hearing [the PCRA court] reserved
decision, but ultimately denied Appellant’s petition by
order and opinion filed on January 17, 2012. Based on
what was presented at the hearing, [the PCRA court] could
not find that trial counsel was ineffective. More
specifically, [the PCRA court] found that trial counsel’s
actions were reasonably based on the evidence that the
Commonwealth had presented implicating Appellant.
Unfortunately, the jury believed the Commonwealth
presented evidence which proved each element of the
offenses beyond a reasonable doubt. The Superior Court
reviewed the record, and affirmed the [order denying PCRA
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1
The court refers to the March 18, 2011 petition as Appellant’s “second”
petition, although it is considered his first petition for purposes of the
statutory timeliness requirements. See Commonwealth v. Turner, 73
A.3d 1283, 1286 (Pa.Super. 2013), appeal denied, 625 Pa. 649, 91 A.3d 162
(2014) (reiterating: “When a PCRA petitioner’s direct appeal rights are
reinstated nunc pro tunc in his first PCRA petition, a subsequent PCRA
petition will be considered a first PCRA petition for timeliness purposes”).
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relief]. Reviewing the record as [the PCRA court has]
done, several years past the time of the trial, [the PCRA
court sees] several problems with the sufficiency of the
evidence in this case; however, the jury as the trier of fact
had the opportunity to view the evidence and listen to the
testimony of witnesses to make determinations of
credibility.
On February 10, 2012, Appellant [timely filed a] notice of
appeal to the Superior Court. On March 14, 2013, the
Superior Court affirmed [the] denial of Appellant’s petition.
However, before the Superior Court had ruled, Appellant
filed a pro se PCRA petition on February 1, 2013. In this
petition, Appellant alleged that his appellate counsel,
Attorney Yost, was ineffective. Due to the fact that [the
PCRA court] had appointed Attorney Yost, who had
represented Appellant on appeal, to represent him on his
PCRA, [the court] did not deny Appellant’s petition.
Instead, on March 26, 2013, the court appointed Seamus
D. Dubbs, Esquire, to represent Appellant on his [February
1, 2013] petition.
[The PCRA court] scheduled a hearing on the matter for
May 29, 2013. However, before a hearing could be held,
Attorney Yost filed a petition for allowance of appeal to the
Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Once the Supreme Court
denied Appellant’s request to review the case, [the PCRA
court] reappointed Attorney Dubbs, and scheduled a
hearing for February 27, 2014.
[The only issue raised at the February 27th hearing] was
whether Attorney Yost was ineffective for failing to ask the
Superior Court for reconsideration following its affirmance
of Appellant’s judgment of sentence. On April 24, [2014],
the PCRA court issued an order and opinion denying
Appellant’s PCRA petition.
On May 30, 2014, Appellant filed a pro se notice of appeal
to the Superior Court. On June 2, 2014, Attorney Dubbs
filed a notice of appeal to the Superior Court. The same
day, [the PCRA court] directed Appellant to file his [Rule]
1925(b) statement. … On [June] 15, 2014, Appellant filed
his [Rule] 1925(b) statement.
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On July 18, 2014, the Superior Court directed Appellant to
show cause as to why his appeal should not be dismissed
because the PCRA court did not grant Appellant leave to
appeal nunc pro tunc. Having received no response from
Appellant, the Superior Court quashed the appeal on
August 11, 2014.
On July 13, 2015, Appellant filed another pro se PCRA
petition. … On October 29, 2015, [at a PCRA hearing, the
court] reinstated Appellant’s appeal rights with respect to
the April 24, 2014, denial of his PCRA petition. …
Appellant timely filed a notice of appeal…on November 20,
2015. [The PCRA court] directed him to file [a Rule]
1925(b) statement, which he did on December 14, 2015.
(PCRA Court Opinion, filed December 30, 2015, at 2-8).
Appellant raises the following issue for our review:
WHETHER SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE WAS PRESENTED TO
SUSTAIN A VERDICT OF GUILTY[?]
(Appellant’s Brief at 7).
Our standard of review of the denial of a PCRA petition is limited to
examining whether the evidence of record supports the court’s
determination and whether its decision is free of legal error.
Commonwealth v. Conway, 14 A.3d 101 (Pa.Super. 2011), appeal denied,
612 Pa. 687, 29 A.3d 795 (2011). This Court grants great deference to the
findings of the PCRA court if the record contains any support for those
findings. Commonwealth v. Boyd, 923 A.2d 513 (Pa.Super. 2007), appeal
denied, 593 Pa. 754, 932 A.2d 74 (2007). The PCRA court findings will not
be disturbed unless the certified record provides no support for the findings.
Commonwealth v. Taylor, 933 A.2d 1035, 1040 (Pa.Super. 2007), appeal
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denied, 597 Pa. 715, 951 A.2d 1163 (2008).
Appellant argues the Superior Court misstated key facts on direct
appeal. Appellant contends police did not find any drugs at Appellant’s
residence, 314 Reinecke Place, as stated in this Court’s March 24, 2009,
disposition. Appellant asserts the police searching Appellant’s residence
found only ordinary household items: a box of latex gloves, a box of face
masks, a box of sandwich bags, a roll of duct tape, a plastic bag with a
ripped corner, a pair of scissors, a newspaper with numbers written on it,
mail, a bag of unknown white powder, a coffee grinder, and a small plastic
baggie with the number “8” written on it. Appellant maintains the
prosecution was unable to prove he had control over the apartment at 626
Chestnut Street, where drugs were found, or to demonstrate Appellant’s
awareness of any drug activity occurring there. Appellant insists his
presence in his co-defendant’s car on the date of his arrest was just because
he needed a ride to another location. Appellant indicates his co-defendant’s
testimony established Appellant was not involved in drug production or
sales. Appellant concludes the evidence presented was insufficient to
sustain his convictions. We cannot agree.
The timeliness of a PCRA petition is a jurisdictional requisite.
Commonwealth v. Robinson, 12 A.3d 477 (Pa.Super. 2011). A court may
not examine the merits of a petition for post-conviction relief that is
untimely. Commonwealth v. Abu-Jamal, 574 Pa. 724, 735, 833 A.2d
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719, 726 (2003), cert. denied, 541 U.S. 1048, 124 S.Ct. 2173, 158 L.Ed.2d
742 (2004). To be eligible for relief under the PCRA, a petitioner must plead
and prove, inter alia, his allegations of error were not previously litigated or
waived. 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9543(a)(3). A PCRA petition must be filed within
one year of the date the underlying judgment becomes final. 42 Pa.C.S.A. §
9545(b)(1). A judgment is deemed final “at the conclusion of direct review,
including discretionary review in the Supreme Court of the United States and
the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, or at the expiration of time for seeking
review.” 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9545(b)(3).
The three statutory exceptions to the timeliness provisions in the PCRA
allow for very limited circumstances under which the late filing of a petition
will be excused. To invoke an exception, a petition must allege and the
petitioner must prove:
(i) the failure to raise a claim previously was the result of
interference by government officials with the presentation
of the claim in violation of the Constitution or laws of this
Commonwealth or the Constitution or laws of the United
States;
(ii) the facts upon which the claim is predicated were
unknown to the petitioner and could not have been
ascertained by the exercise of due diligence; or
(iii) the right asserted is a constitutional right that was
recognized by the Supreme Court of the United States or
the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania after the time period
provided in this section and has been held by that court to
apply retroactively.
42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9545(b)(1)(i)-(iii). A petitioner asserting a timeliness
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exception must file a petition within sixty days of the date the claim could
have been presented. 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 9545(b)(2).
Instantly, Appellant’s judgment of sentence became final on March 22,
2010, when the United States Supreme Court denied his petition for writ of
certiorari. See U.S.Sup.Ct.R. 13. Appellant filed his most recent PCRA
petition (3rd) on July 13, 2015. Appellant’s third petition made no attempt to
plead and prove any exception to the PCRA’s time restrictions, pursuant to
Section 9545(b)(1). Instead, Appellant alleged that, on May 8, 2015, he
discovered this Court had quashed his appeal from the denial of his second
PCRA petition on August 11, 2014. Appellant filed his third PCRA petition 66
days later. Thus, Appellant’s third petition was patently untimely. See 42
Pa.C.S.A. § 9545(b)(1). Appellant’s third petition sought to reinstate his
appeal rights from the order denying his second PCRA petition that he filed
on February 1, 2013, while the appeal from his first PCRA petition was still
pending. The PCRA court should have dismissed Appellant’s February 1,
2013 PCRA petition, for lack of jurisdiction. See Commonwealth v. Lark,
560 Pa. 487, 746 A.2d 585 (2000) (holding court has no jurisdiction to
review subsequent PCRA petition that is filed while appeal from previous
PCRA petition is still pending). See also Commonwealth v. Davis, 816
A.2d 1129, 1134 (Pa.Super. 2003), appeal denied, 576 Pa. 710, 839 A.2d
351 (2003) (stating appellant is precluded from filing additional PCRA
petition while prior PCRA petition is pending on appeal; if untimely,
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subsequent petition must plead and prove exception to one-year
jurisdictional time bar). Likewise, Appellant’s February 1, 2013 petition
(second) was facially untimely, as it was filed almost three years after his
judgment of sentence became final. Yet, the court allowed this second PCRA
petition to linger until after the pending appeal concerning the denial of
Appellant’s previous petition was resolved; then the court granted a hearing
on the second petition. Ultimately, the court properly dismissed the second
petition in its April 24, 2014 order. Although the PCRA court offered a
different rationale for its denial of relief, this Court may affirm on any basis.
See Commonwealth v. Reese, 31 A.3d 708, 727 (Pa.Super. 2011) (en
banc) (stating appellate court may affirm order of trial court on any basis if
ultimate decision is correct). Thus, we affirm the April 24, 2014 order
presently before us, which denied Appellant’s February 1, 2013 petition
(second), because the court had no jurisdiction to address it on the merits.2
Order affirmed.
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2
Moreover, to the extent Appellant’s February 1, 2013 petition was based on
PCRA counsel’s ineffectiveness, Appellant abandoned that claim in this
appeal. Instead, Appellant’s brief addressed only the sufficiency of the
evidence to support his conviction. We observe that Appellant’s sufficiency
challenge was previously litigated on direct appeal. See Commonwealth v.
Sanchez, 972 A.2d 561 (Pa.Super. 2009), appeal denied, 603 Pa. 685, 982
A.2d 1228 (2009) (affirming Appellant’s conviction based on Appellant’s
access to large drug stash housed at 626 Chestnut Street). The appellate
decision made clear this Court did not rely on the errant fact contained in its
summary of facts. Put simply, the PCRA court erred when it addressed the
actual merits of Appellant’s sufficiency issue.
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Judgment Entered.
Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary
Date: 10/6/2016
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