Com. v. Copeland, O. ( 2018 )


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  • J-S76021-17
    NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
    COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA                   IN THE SUPERIOR COURT
    OF
    PENNSYLVANIA
    Appellee
    v.
    OMAR COPELAND
    Appellant                No. 2244 EDA 2016
    Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence imposed June 10, 2016
    In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County
    Criminal Division at No: CP-51-CR-013639-2013
    BEFORE: PANELLA, STABILE, and PLATT,* JJ.
    MEMORANDUM BY STABILE, J.:                             FILED APRIL 17, 2018
    Appellant, Omar Copeland, appeals from his judgment of sentence in
    the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas of 1-2 years’ imprisonment for
    persons not to possess firearms.1 Appellant argues that the trial court erred
    in denying his pretrial motion to suppress and motion to dismiss his case under
    Pa.R.Crim.P. 600. We affirm.
    On September 3, 2013, Appellant was arrested and charged with several
    weapons offenses. Through counsel, Appellant filed a motion to suppress the
    evidence relating to his arrest, including the seizure of a gun that he discarded
    while fleeing from Philadelphia Police Officer McAllister. On May 16, 2014, the
    ____________________________________________
    *   Retired Senior Judge assigned to the Superior Court.
    1   18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6105.
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    suppression court denied Appellant’s motion to suppress after a hearing.
    Subsequently, Appellant waived his right to counsel and demanded a jury trial
    (which he had previously waived). In April 2016, after multiple continuances,
    the case proceeded to a jury trial on all charges except persons not to possess
    firearms, for which the trial court ordered a separate trial. On April 12, 2016,
    the court entered a mistrial when the jury failed to reach a verdict.      Trial
    immediately began on the charge of persons not to possess firearms. The
    parties stipulated that Appellant’s prior criminal convictions prohibited him
    from possessing a gun. The jury found Appellant guilty of this charge.
    On June 10, 2016, the trial court imposed the sentence of 1-2 years’
    imprisonment.      On June 16, 2016, the Commonwealth filed a motion for
    reconsideration of sentence alleging that the trial court deviated from the
    Sentencing Guidelines. On July 1, 2016, Appellant filed a notice of appeal.
    On September 13, 2016, the trial court denied the Commonwealth’s motion
    for reconsideration. The Commonwealth did not appeal to this Court. Both
    Appellant and the trial court complied with Pa.R.A.P. 1925.2
    ____________________________________________
    2Technically, Appellant’s appeal was premature, because he filed his notice of
    appeal while the Commonwealth’s motion for reconsideration awaited a
    decision. See Pa.R.Crim.P. 720(A)(4). Nevertheless, we will treat Appellant’s
    appeal as timely under Pa.R.A.P. 905(a)(5), which prescribes: “A notice of
    appeal filed after the announcement of a determination but before the entry
    of an appealable order shall be treated as filed after such entry and on the
    day thereof.”
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    Appellant, who continues to represent himself pro se, failed to include a
    Statement of Questions Presented in his brief on appeal. Nevertheless, based
    on his argument section, we discern that his brief includes three issues: (1)
    whether the trial court erred in denying Appellant’s motion to suppress; (2)
    whether the trial court erred in overruling Appellant’s objection to the
    testimony of Officer Morales, the first officer to encounter Appellant on the
    evening of his arrest; and (3) whether the trial court erred in denying
    Appellant’s pretrial motion to dismiss the charges under Rule 600.
    We first address whether the trial court properly denied Appellant’s
    motion to suppress. Our standard of review for the denial of a suppression
    motion is well established:
    [The] standard of review in addressing a challenge to a trial court’s
    denial of a suppression motion is whether the factual findings are
    supported by the record and whether the legal conclusions drawn
    from those facts are correct. When reviewing such a ruling by the
    suppression court, we must consider only the evidence of the
    prosecution and so much of the evidence of the defense as
    remains uncontradicted when read in the context of the record
    . . . Where the record supports the findings of the suppression
    court, we are bound by those facts and may reverse only if legal
    conclusions drawn therefrom are in error.
    Commonwealth v. Bush, 
    166 A.3d 1278
    , 1282 (Pa. Super. 2017).                  Our
    scope of review in suppression matters is limited to the suppression hearing
    record, and excludes any evidence elicited at trial. In re L.J., 
    79 A.3d 1073
    ,
    1085 (Pa. 2013).
    The   trial   court   summarized   the   evidence   adduced   during    the
    suppression hearing as follows:
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    On direct examination, Officer Morales of the Philadelphia Police
    . . . testified that he responded to a “person with a gun” call while
    on duty in the area of 412 Saunders Avenue around 10:30 p.m.
    on September 3, 2013. The Commonwealth questioned Officer
    Morales on what brought him to that location. After referring to
    his notes, Officer Morales testified to the following:
    I was responding to “person with a gun” call at that
    location. I met with a complainant later identified as
    Anthony DiDonato. And he explained to me that he
    was walking his dog on his leash. He saw a male in
    an empty lot. And he approached the male . . . And
    he was wondering why—he said, What are you doing
    there? And the male stated to him, get your dog away
    from me or I’ll . . . blow its head off, pointing a firearm
    at the dog’s direction. Officer Morales then proceeded
    to patrol the area and advised the police over radio
    that the male was possibly armed and dangerous.
    Officer Morales testified that while he was not present for the
    actual stop of the male, he was present when Mr. DiDonato was
    taken to the location where the male was being held. Officer
    Morales testified that the location was 3909 Willow Street, only a
    couple of blocks from the scene of the complaint. Mr. DiDonato
    was taken to the location within ten (10) to fifteen (15) minutes
    after having originally spoken to Officer Morales. Officer Morales
    testified that when he got to the location holding the male he saw
    [Appellant], Omar Copeland. Officer Morales testified that at this
    location Mr. DiDonato positively identified [Appellant] as the male
    with the firearm.
    On cross-examination, Officer Morales testified that he was the
    first officer on the scene to respond to the “person with a gun”
    call. Officer Morales testified that he could not recall whether he
    was solo at the time, but he believed he was. Officer Morales
    testified that the descriptive information he received was provided
    by Mr. DiDonato. Officer Morales testified that he then provided
    the descriptive information to the police radio. Officer Morales
    testified that [Appellant] was already in custody with other officers
    when he first saw [Appellant].
    On direct examination, Officer Sean McAllister of the Philadelphia
    Police . . . testified that he was on duty in the area of 3900 Baring
    Street around 10:30 p.m. on September 3, 2013.                 Officer
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    McAllister testified that upon reaching that area[,] he saw
    [Appellant]. He described that in relation to 412 Saunders
    Avenue, 3900 Baring Street is just one block away. Officer
    McAllister testified that he was in the area to respond to a police
    radio call for a “person with a gun.” He recalled that the flash
    over the radio described a black male wearing a blue hat, blue
    shirt, and white cargo shorts. Officer McAllister testified that once
    he arrived at the location, he saw [Appellant] wearing a blue hat,
    blue shirt, and white cargo shorts. Officer McAllister and his
    partner, both dressed in plain clothes and in an unmarked vehicle,
    then attempted to stop [Appellant] because [Appellant] matched
    the flash description. Officer McAllister explained that they exited
    the vehicle and identified themselves as police[,] and [Appellant]
    responded by fleeing. Officer McAllister testified that he and his
    partner were wearing outer vest covers which had their badges,
    names, and chains with a badge that identified them as police
    officers. Officer McAllister testified that [Appellant] fled down 400
    Sloan Street and reached to the front of his waistband with a gun
    in his right hand outside of 413 Sloan Street. [Appellant] then
    crouched down and threw the gun in the sewer. Officer McAllister
    testified that [Appellant] proceeded north and made a right onto
    900 Willow Street. [Appellant] attempted to enter the rear of that
    address, but Officer McAllister pulled [Appellant] out of the
    residence. Officer McAllister testified that [Appellant] stated he
    lived there and a struggle ensued that led them into the kitchen.
    Thirty (30) seconds later[,] Officer McAllister’s backup arrived and
    [Appellant] was arrested. Officer McAllister testified that he had
    pursued [Appellant] fleeing by himself. He observed [Appellant]
    discard the gun as he fled, from about five (5) to ten (10) feet
    away. Officer McAllister testified that the gun was a silver revolver
    with a silver barrel and black handle. Officer McAllister testified
    that when [Appellant] discarded the gun it did not actually go into
    the sewer but instead made it only to the grate.
    After [Appellant] was taken into custody, Officer McAllister
    returned within a minute to the area and found the gun between
    the grate and concrete. Officer McAllister testified that there were
    no other people in the area at that time, nor when he initially saw
    [Appellant] on the 3900 block of Baring Street.
    On cross-examination, Officer McAllister testified that the outer
    vest he was wearing on top of plain clothes was black and it had
    a chain with his real badge on it. Officer McAllister testified that
    when he initially saw [Appellant] walking down the street he was
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    alone. Officer McAllister and his partner were driving northbound
    on 300 Sloan Street as [Appellant] was traveling southbound.
    Officer McAllister testified that [Appellant] then made a right on
    3900 Baring Street. Officer McAllister and his partner turned left
    to go westbound as well and angled their vehicle to pull right up
    to the curb near [Appellant]. Officer McAllister then opened his
    door and got out of the vehicle. Officer McAllister testified that
    the positioning of the vehicle did not cut [Appellant] off but the
    vehicle was [not] legally parked.
    Officer McAllister testified that he immediately identified himself
    as a police officer with his badge out to [Appellant] as he exited
    the vehicle. He testified that he was about five (5) feet away from
    [Appellant] at that moment and he then told [Appellant] to stop.
    Officer McAllister testified that [Appellant] turned and ran and that
    he followed after [Appellant]. Officer McAllister testified that he
    remained about five (5) feet behind [Appellant] during the entire
    chase until he caught [Appellant] at the rear of 3900 Willow
    Street. Officer McAllister testified that he saw [Appellant] toss the
    gun at the sewer during the chase, and he was able to identify it
    as a gun at the time. Officer McAllister also testified that
    [Appellant] wasn’t doing anything illegal upon initial observation,
    prior to taking flight.
    For purposes of the suppression hearing, counsel stipulated that
    if the Commonwealth were to call Detective Pearson to testify, he
    would testify that he responded to [Appellant]’s location and
    recovered the gun at the address of 413 Sloan Street. Detective
    Sloan would have further testified that the gun was placed on a
    Philadelphia property receipt and that it was a silver revolver.
    There was also a stipulation to the authenticity of the CAD report,
    which was marked as Commonwealth Exhibit 1 and moved into
    evidence. The court subsequently denied [Appellant]’s Motion to
    Suppress.
    Trial Court Opinion, 3/31/17, at 2-5 (transcript citations omitted).         We
    conclude that the trial court’s opinion accurately recounts the evidence
    presented during the suppression hearing.
    Appellant claims that the police lacked reasonable suspicion to conduct
    an investigatory stop, and that they coerced him into abandoning his gun. We
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    disagree. Police may briefly detain a person for an investigatory detention if
    they   have    an   objectively     reasonable   suspicion   that   crime   is   afoot.
    Commonwealth v. Holmes, 
    14 A.3d 89
    , 96 (Pa. 2011). To demonstrate
    reasonable suspicion, an officer “must be able to point to specific and
    articulable facts and reasonable inferences drawn from those facts in light of
    [his] experience.” Commonwealth v. Cook, 
    735 A.2d 673
    , 677 (Pa. 1999).
    Courts “must give due weight to the specific reasonable inferences the police
    officer is entitled to draw from the facts in light of his experience.” Holmes,
    14 A.3d at 96.
    Here, Officer McAlister received a flash radio report that an African-
    American male had pulled a gun outside another man’s house and threatened
    to shoot the man’s dog. The man identified himself to Officer Morales, who
    called in the report. The fact that the information came from an identified
    victim instead of an anonymous source “imparted a high degree of reliability
    to the report.”3 In re D.M., 
    727 A.2d 556
    , 558 (Pa. 1999). The incident took
    place just one to two blocks away from Officer McAlister’s location.               The
    suspect, who wore a blue hat, blue shirt, and white cargo shorts, was last
    ____________________________________________
    3 Upon Appellant’s apprehension, Officer Morales brought the victim to the
    scene, where he identified Appellant as the man who pulled a gun and
    threatened to shoot his dog. The fact that the victim was accompanied by a
    police officer to the scene in the immediate aftermath of the crime permits the
    reasonable inference that the victim “was known to, and was in the company
    of, the police prior to the stop.” Commonwealth v. Cruz, 
    21 A.3d 1247
    ,
    1251 (Pa. Super. 2011).
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    seen walking westbound on Baring Street. Moments after receiving the flash
    report, Officer McAllister saw Appellant—clad in the same distinctive blue-and-
    white outfit—walking westbound on Baring Street. When the officer exited his
    vehicle and identified himself as a police officer, Appellant immediately took
    off running.   In short, Officer McAlister had reasonable suspicion to stop
    Appellant because Appellant matched the description in the flash report, which
    had a high degree of reliability, and Appellant fled when the officer identified
    himself.   Commonwealth v. Washington, 
    51 A.3d 895
    , 898 (Pa. Super.
    2012) (“nervous, evasive behavior and headlong flight all provoke suspicion
    of criminal behavior in the context of response to police presence”); see also
    In re D.M., 727 A.2d at 558-59 (officer would have been derelict in his duty
    had he not stopped group of youths who matched in number the persons who
    had committed armed robbery a short distance away); Commonwealth v.
    Jackson, 
    678 A.2d 798
    , 801 (Pa. Super. 1996) (reasonable suspicion exists
    where suspect exactly matches “meager” description of armed robber, there
    is proximity in time or place to crime, and suspected crime is serious felony).
    While fleeing lawful pursuit, Appellant pulled a silver revolver from his
    waistband and attempted to throw it into a gutter.       This created probable
    cause to arrest him, because police have probable cause to arrest any person
    for violation of the Uniform Firearms Act whom they observe in possession of
    a firearm on Philadelphia public streets. Commonwealth v. Taggart, 
    997 A.2d 1189
    , 1196-97 (Pa. Super. 2010) (“[A]n officer’s observation of an
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    individual carrying a handgun on public streets in the city of Philadelphia gives
    rise to probable cause for arrest under [18 Pa.C.S.A.] § 6108”). Further, once
    Appellant abandoned his gun, “the police were free to retrieve it and use it for
    evidentiary purposes.” Commonwealth v. Byrd, 
    987 A.2d 786
    , 794 (Pa.
    Super. 2009). Probable cause also existed to arrest Appellant for resisting
    arrest when Officer McAlister caught up to him, causing them to crash through
    the back door of a house he tried to enter. See Commonwealth v. Biagini,
    
    655 A.2d 492
    , 499 (Pa. 1995) (“we cannot state it any more clearly: there
    does not exist in Pennsylvania a right to resist arrest, under any
    circumstances”).
    Appellant claims that Officer McAlister coerced him into stopping by the
    manner in which he exited his patrol vehicle and by stating “do not move” as
    he approached Appellant. This argument fails because, as discussed above,
    Officer McAlister had reasonable suspicion to stop Appellant, which ripened
    into probable cause when Appellant removed his weapon from his waistband
    and discarded it.
    For these reasons, the suppression court properly denied Appellant’s
    motion to suppress.
    In his second argument, Appellant contends that Officer Morales’
    testimony during the suppression hearing concerning the victim’s report to
    him was hearsay. This testimony was not hearsay. Hearsay is “a statement,
    other than one made by the declarant while testifying at the trial or hearing,
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    offered in evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted.” Pa.R.E. 801(c).
    “When a hearsay statement is offered for a purpose other than proving the
    truth of its contents, it is not hearsay and is not excludable under the hearsay
    rule.”    Commonwealth v. Hood, 
    872 A.2d 175
    , 178 (Pa. Super. 2005).
    Officer Morales announced the victim’s report over police radio, and Officer
    McAlister reacted to the radio report by apprehending Appellant. Thus, the
    Commonwealth introduced Officer Morales’ testimony to explain Officer
    McAlister’s course of conduct. “An out-of-court statement offered to explain
    a course of conduct is not hearsay.” Commonwealth v. Dent, 
    837 A.2d 571
    ,
    577 (Pa. Super. 2003); see also Commonwealth v. Smith, 
    378 A.2d 1015
    ,
    1017 (Pa. Super. 1977) (trooper’s testimony in bookmaking prosecution
    concerning informant’s statement that trooper could place bets by telephoning
    certain number was not hearsay, as it explained trooper’s subsequent
    actions).     Even if Officer Morales’ testimony were hearsay, hearsay is
    admissible in a suppression hearing. Commonwealth v. Bunch, 
    477 A.2d 1372
    , 1376 (Pa. Super. 1984) (trial court properly admitted hearsay
    testimony at suppression hearing, “[s]ince a determination of probable cause
    may properly be based on hearsay”); Commonwealth v. Seltzer, 
    437 A.2d 988
    , 991 (Pa. Super. 1981). Thus, Appellant’s second argument fails.
    In his third and final argument, Appellant asserts that the trial court
    erred by denying his motion to dismiss all charges under Rule 600.          We
    disagree.
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    Rule 600, Pennsylvania’s speedy trial rule, “establishes a careful matrix
    protecting a Appellant’s rights to be free from prolonged pretrial incarceration
    and to a speedy trial, while maintaining the Commonwealth’s ability to seek
    confinement of dangerous individuals and those posing a risk of flight, and to
    bring its cases in an orderly fashion.” Commonwealth v. Dixon, 
    907 A.2d 468
    , 473 (Pa. 2006). Rule 600 provides: “Trial in a court case in which a
    written complaint is filed against the defendant shall commence within 365
    days from the date on which the complaint is filed.”               Pa.R.Crim.P.
    600(A)(2)(a). “For purposes of paragraph (A), periods of delay at any stage
    of the proceedings caused by the Commonwealth when the Commonwealth
    has failed to exercise due diligence shall be included in the computation of the
    time within which trial must commence. Any other periods of delay shall be
    excluded from the computation.” Pa.R.Crim.P. 600(C)(1). In addition, the
    rule incorporates “the long line of cases that have construed” prior versions.
    Comment, Pa.R.Crim.P. 600. Excludable time under Rule 600 includes any
    period of delay caused by the unavailability of defendant or his attorney and
    any defense–requested continuances, as well as delays resulting from
    circumstances beyond the Commonwealth’s control and despite its due
    diligence. Commonwealth v. Hunt, 
    858 A.2d 1234
    , 1241 (Pa. Super. 2004)
    (en banc).     Excludable time also includes periods of judicial delay.
    Commonwealth v. Mills, 
    162 A.3d 323
    , 325 (Pa. 2017).              “Accordingly,
    where a trial-ready prosecutor must wait several months due to a court
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    calendar, the time should be treated as ‘delay’ for which the Commonwealth
    is not accountable.” 
    Id.
     On the other hand, “time attributable to the normal
    progression of a case simply is not ‘delay’ for purposes of Rule 600.”        
    Id.
    “Time during which no one is prepared for trial—or even possibly could be
    ready,” is not “delay.” 
    Id.
     (in attempted murder case, 174 day delay between
    filing    of   complaint   and   status    conference   was   chargeable   against
    Commonwealth under Rule 600; at time of status conference, Commonwealth
    was not yet in position to provide complete discovery, assigned assistant
    district attorney had a planned vacation on the then-scheduled trial date two
    weeks later, and Commonwealth had not yet initiated DNA testing of genetic
    material from defendant).
    We review a trial court’s denial of a Rule 600 motion for an abuse of
    discretion. Commonwealth v. Solano, 
    906 A.2d 1180
    , 1186 (Pa. 2006).
    “Our scope of review is limited to the record evidence from the speedy trial
    hearing and the findings of the lower court, reviewed in the light most
    favorable to the prevailing party.” Commonwealth v. Selenski, 
    994 A.2d 1083
    , 1088 (Pa. 2010).
    The record reflects that Appellant was arrested on September 3, 2013
    and charged with firearms offenses. A preliminary hearing was scheduled in
    the Philadelphia Municipal Court for September 24, 2013, but on that date,
    the Commonwealth obtained a continuance because a witness had not been
    subpoenaed. When the witness failed to appear at the next listing on October
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    15, 2013, the Commonwealth obtained a second continuance. On October
    31, 2013, Appellant’s preliminary hearing took place, and he was held for court
    on   all   charges.   On      December    11,   2013,   Appellant   rejected   the
    Commonwealth’s plea offer, and the court granted a continuance to December
    27, 2013 for a bench trial.
    On December 13, 2013, Appellant filed a motion to suppress the
    revolver he discarded at the scene of his arrest. On December 27, 2013, the
    scheduled trial date, the Honorable Christopher R. Wogan granted Appellant’s
    request for a trial continuance to May 6, 2014, followed by an additional ten-
    day continuance to May 16, 2014, and ruled both continuances excludable for
    purposes of Rule 600.
    On May 16, 2014, the suppression hearing took place, and the court
    denied the motion. On the same date, Appellant waived his right to a jury
    trial but requested a continuance to determine whether he would proceed to
    trial pro se or with new trial counsel.    On May 29, 2014, the court held a
    hearing pursuant to Commonwealth v. Grazier, 
    713 A.2d 81
     (Pa. 1998),
    and granted Appellant’s request to represent himself. The next day, Appellant
    requested a jury trial and a continuance to prepare for trial. Judge Wogan
    granted the request, continued the case to February 25, 2015, and ruled the
    time excludable.
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    Between August 14, 2014 and February 12, 2015, Appellant filed nine
    motions.4 On February 25, 2015, he requested another continuance to March
    4, 2015. On that date, Judge Wogan granted another defense continuance,
    this time scheduling a motions hearing on December 10, 2015, and again
    ruling the time excludable.          On June 29, 2015, Appellant filed another
    suppression motion. Following Judge Wogan’s retirement in August 2015, the
    case was reassigned to the Honorable J. Scott O’Keefe. Appellant then filed a
    motion to amend his petition for writ of habeas corpus and a motion to dismiss
    pursuant to Rule 600 on November 23 and 30, 2015, respectively.
    On December 10, 2015, Appellant’s trial was continued one day because
    he was not brought down from prison. The next day, Judge O’Keefe heard
    argument on Appellant’s Rule 600 motion, during which the Commonwealth
    acknowledged it caused 58 days of delay between September 3, 2013 and
    October 31, 2013. Because Judge Wogan had already ruled that the remaining
    periods of delay were attributable to Appellant and thus excludable under Rule
    600, Judge O’Keefe concluded that he lacked “the authority to overrule a judge
    of the same jurisdiction” and denied all of Appellant’s pending motions. The
    ____________________________________________
    4 Appellant filed a motion to proceed in forma pauperis (August 14, 2014);
    motions to quash and dismiss the case (October 31, 2014); a petition for a
    writ of habeas corpus (January 16, 2015); a supplemental motion to dismiss
    and a petition for a writ of prohibition (January 23, 2015); motions to suppress
    both physical and identification evidence (February 6, 2015); and a motion in
    limine (February 12, 2015).
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    Commonwealth then requested the earliest possible trial date, and the court
    continued trial to March 21, 2016.
    On March 21, 2016, due to another trial in the same courtroom, Judge
    O’Keefe continued trial for one week. On March 28, 2016, Appellant filed a
    second Rule 600 motion, and his case was reassigned to the Honorable Sierra
    Thomas Street, who ordered a brief continuance to April 4, 2016. On that
    date, when Appellant was not brought down from prison, trial was continued
    to April 5, 2016. Voir dire commenced on April 5, 2016, and presentation of
    evidence began on April 7, 2016.
    Judge    Street   reasoned   in    her     Rule   1925(a)   opinion   that   the
    Commonwealth was responsible for the 58 days of delay between September
    3, 2013 and October 31, 2013. The Commonwealth agrees that it caused this
    delay. Judge Street also held that the Commonwealth was responsible for the
    288-day delay between February 25, 2015 and December 10, 2015:
    [Appellant] arrived for court on February 25th anticipating the
    commencement of the jury trial he had requested back at the end
    of May in 2014. However, [Appellant] encountered a mistaken
    docket entry by Courtroom Operations for a waiver trial. Unable
    to accommodate [Appellant]’s (now second) request for a jury trial
    on that date, the court continued the case to March 4, 2015. On
    that date, the docket reflects that the volume of motions
    submitted by the pro se [Appellant] were “just given to Judge
    Wogan.” This resulted in the court scheduling a Motions Hearing
    on December 10, 2015, amounting to two hundred and eighty-
    eight (288) days that [Appellant] was effectively in judicial limbo.
    Consider that by February 25th, [Appellant] would have had nearly
    nine months since his last court date, the . . . requirement for the
    Commonwealth to make an effort to transfer the case to an
    available judge certainly seems applicable. The docket reflects no
    such effort. For that reason, the Commonwealth failed to exercise
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    due diligence on the February 25th court date and the subsequent
    two hundred and eighty-eight (288) days are attributable to the
    Commonwealth.
    Trial Court Opinion, 3/31/17, at 20. Judge Street held that all other delays
    were not chargeable to the Commonwealth, and that the total number of days
    attributable to the Commonwealth, 346 days, “fell within the permissible
    bounds of Rule 600(A).” Id. at 21.
    We agree with Judge Street that the 58 days between September 3,
    2013 and October 31, 2013 is attributable to the Commonwealth. We do not
    agree, however, that the delay between February 25, 2015 to December 10,
    2015 is attributable to the Commonwealth. This was a “judicial delay” caused
    by the court’s administrative errors in (1) scheduling a non-jury trial for
    February 25, 2015 instead of a jury trial, and (2) failing to give Appellant’s
    litany of motions to Judge Wogan until March 4, 2015. Unlike Mills, nothing
    in this record indicates that the Commonwealth was unprepared, sought
    continuances during this time period, or otherwise should bear the blame for
    the court’s internal errors.
    Finally, we agree with Judge Street that none of the other delays in this
    case are chargeable to the Commonwealth. The other delays were the product
    of Appellant’s motion to suppress (December 2013—May 2014), Appellant’s
    demand to represent himself in a jury trial (May 2014—February 2015) and
    the court’s heavy caseload (December 2015—April 2016).
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    For these reasons, the total delay chargeable to the Commonwealth was
    far less than 365 days, well within Rule 600’s bounds. Appellant’s Rule 600
    argument is devoid of merit.
    Judgment of sentence affirmed.
    Judgment Entered.
    Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
    Prothonotary
    Date: 4/17/18
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