Com. v. Butler, C. ( 2017 )

J-S80012-16
NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
PENNSYLVANIA
Appellee
v.
CASSIUS BUTLER
Appellant No. 251 MDA 2016
Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence December 7, 2015
In the Court of Common Pleas of Dauphin County
Criminal Division at No(s): CP-22-CR-0000137-2014
BEFORE: LAZARUS, J., STABILE, J., and RANSOM, J.
JUDGMENT ORDER BY LAZARUS, J.: FILED JANUARY 10, 2017
Cassius Butler appeals from the judgment of sentence, entered in the
Court of Common Pleas of Dauphin County, after he was convicted, following
a stipulated waiver trial, of theft by deception1 and conspiracy to commit
retail theft.2 Specifically, Butler challenges the trial court’s denial of his
motion to dismiss pursuant to Pa.R.Crim.P. 600. For the reasons that follow,
we affirm.
The fundamental tool for appellate review is the official record of the
events that occurred in the trial court. Commonwealth v. Preston, 904
A.2d 1, 6 (Pa. Super. 2006), citing Commonwealth v. Williams, 715 A.2d
____________________________________________
1
18 Pa.C.S.A. § 3922(a)(1).
2
18 Pa.C.S.A. § 903; 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 3929(a)(3).
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1101, 1103 (Pa. 1998). The law of Pennsylvania is well-settled that matters
which are not of record cannot be considered on appeal. Id. See also
Commonwealth v. Bracalielly, 658 A.2d 755, 763 (Pa. 1995);
Commonwealth v. Baker, 614 A.2d 663, 672 (Pa. 1992);
Commonwealth v. Quinlan, 412 A.2d 494, 496 (Pa. 1980). In the
absence of an adequate certified record,3 there is no support for an
appellant’s arguments and, thus, there is no basis on which relief could be
granted. Preston, 904 A.2d at 7.
Our law is unequivocal that the responsibility rests upon the appellant
to ensure that the record certified on appeal is complete in the sense that it
contains all of the materials necessary for the reviewing court to perform its
duty. Commonwealth v. Kleinicke, 895 A.2d 562, 575 (Pa. Super. 2006)
(en banc). The Rules of Appellate Procedure require an appellant to order
and pay for any transcript necessary to permit resolution of the issues raised
on appeal. Pa.R.A.P. 1911(a). When the appellant fails to conform to the
requirements of Rule 1911, any claims that cannot be resolved in the
absence of the necessary transcripts must be deemed waived for the
purpose of appellate review. Williams, 715 A.2d at 1105. It is not proper
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3
The certified record consists of the “original papers and exhibits filed in the
lower court, paper copies of legal papers filed with the prothonotary by
means of electronic filing, the transcript of proceedings, if any, and a
certified copy of the docket entries prepared by the clerk of the lower
court[.]” Pa.R.A.P. 1921.
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for an appellate court to order transcripts, nor is it the responsibility of this
Court to obtain the necessary transcripts. Id.
Here, Butler filed a motion for transcription of notes of testimony in
which he requested “the notes of testimony from Defendant’s Stipulated
Waiver Trial[,] Plea Agreement and Sentencing held on December 7, 2015.”
Motion for Transcription, 2/3/16, at ¶ 3. However, the motion failed to
request transcription of the Rule 600 motion hearing that occurred
immediately prior to his waiver trial. The sole issue Butler raises on appeal
is that the trial court erred in denying his Rule 600 motion. Because we are
unable to conduct a meaningful review of Butler’s claim without the
transcript of the motion hearing, and because the absence of the transcript
is not attributable to a breakdown in the judicial process, we are constrained
to find Butler’s claim to be waived. See Williams, supra (appellate review
will not be denied if failure to transmit record was caused by extraordinary
breakdown in judicial process).
Judgment of sentence affirmed.
Judgment Entered.
Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary
Date: 1/10/2017
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