Com. v. Dixon, T. ( 2020 )


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  • J-A07012-20
    NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
    COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA               :    IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
    :         PENNSYLVANIA
    :
    v.                             :
    :
    :
    TODD JOHN DIXON                            :
    :
    Appellant               :    No. 947 MDA 2019
    Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence Entered February 6, 2019
    In the Court of Common Pleas of Lackawanna County Criminal Division at
    No(s): CP-35-CR-0002899-2016
    BEFORE: OLSON, J., DUBOW, J., and McLAUGHLIN, J.
    MEMORANDUM BY OLSON, J.:                                    FILED JUNE 18, 2020
    Appellant, Todd John Dixon, appeals from the judgment of sentence
    entered on February 6, 2019, as made final by the denial of Appellant’s
    post-sentence motion on May 29, 2019.              We vacate Appellant’s disorderly
    conduct conviction, vacate Appellant’s judgment of sentence, and remand for
    resentencing.
    During Appellant’s March 27, 2018 bench trial, Police Officer Riccardo
    Godino testified that, on August 6, 2016, he was working as a police officer
    for the South Abington Township Police Department.1 N.T. Trial, 3/27/18, at
    17-18. That day, Officer Godino was on-duty and working a special detail to
    aid the St. Benedict’s Church Picnic. He testified:
    ____________________________________________
    1 At the time of trial, Officer Godino testified that he was a cadet with the
    Pennsylvania State Police. N.T. Trial, 3/27/18, at 17.
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    Four officers are typically assigned the duties of foot patrol
    and directing traffic. Officers create a temporary crosswalk
    by utilizing two marked patrol units with their emergency
    lights activated. . . . And officers are in full uniform. We
    wear the high visibility traffic vests. And two officers will
    typically cross families and people coming in and out of the
    bazaar across Newton Ransom Boulevard. The other two
    officers at that time are on foot patrol in the actual church
    picnic patrolling the grounds on foot and just ensuring officer
    presence for the safety and concern of anybody who is
    attending.
    Id. at 19-20.
    Officer Godino testified that, at the time he encountered Appellant, he
    and Officer Leonard Harvey were directing traffic and Officers Justin Brown
    and Anthony Percival were “coming up to relieve us.” Id. at 20. He testified:
    I [had just] cross[ed] a family from the church side of the
    road to the opposite side of the road. . . . At the time in
    question, [] the family was thanking me verbally for our
    assistance in safely crossing them across the road. . . . I had
    traffic stopped on Newton Ransom Boulevard which is a
    [45-mile-per-hour] road. . . . [Newton Ransom Boulevard]
    is a main road. It’s a highway. I was in the middle of this
    highway with the intention[] of stopping any and all traffic to
    safely cross people. . . .
    [O]nce the family was completely across the road, I []
    directed my attention to another couple that was now
    crossing in the opposite direction going into the church picnic.
    When I directed my attention to this couple, I had noticed at
    the time it was [Appellant] and his wife. We made eye
    contact, [Appellant] and I. And I [] gave a nod with my head
    as if to say hello or acknowledge[] a hello. And [Appellant]
    at that point also, I assume, noticed it was [me]. [Appellant]
    recognized me. And he extended his hand out to me and
    gave me the middle finger. He also mouthed the words
    [“]fuck you[”] to me. . . .
    So, once the gesture was made to me . . . and he mouthed
    the words to me, I simply continued to look at [Appellant]
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    and I explained to him verbally[,] I said, “Sir, that’s not very
    professional. This is a family establishment and that would
    constitute disorderly conduct, don’t do that.” The second I
    had finished that sentence, [Appellant] rapidly and very
    aggressively came at me. He approached me in a manner in
    which, I’m still in the middle of the roadway, all of my
    attention was directed at [Appellant] at the time. [Appellant]
    got himself and his body and his face within one inch of my
    face . . . in what I took at the time as a possible fighting
    stance or manner. . . . And he proclaimed with putting his
    finger in my face[,] saying, “Do you remember me asshole?
    Well, fuck you.” At that point, I was in fear for not just my
    safety, but for the safety of [Appellant]. I was concerned. I
    wasn’t too sure what his intentions were at the time. And
    quite frankly, it happened so rapidly, I wasn’t really sure what
    his intentions were.
    Id. at 20-23 and 49-50.
    Officer Godino testified that, because of Appellant’s actions:
    All of my attention was focused on [Appellant]. . . . I lost
    the ability to concentrate on the approaching traffic from in
    front of me and the traffic from behind me and all of my
    attention was now directed at [Appellant]. And my official
    job of stopping traffic or ensuring the safety of others to cross
    was not able to be done at that point.
    Id. at 23.
    He further testified:
    Because of the fact that I could not concentrate on anything
    around me and I wanted to ensure that both [Appellant] and
    I were out of the danger zone of being in the middle of that
    highway, I [] told [Appellant], I said, “Let’s go, get off the
    roadway.” And at that time, [Appellant] said, “Fuck you, I’m
    not going anywhere.” And he more or less continued to carry
    on with his antics. So, I then said to [Appellant,] “Let’s go,
    you’re under arrest.”
    Id. at 23-24.
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    As Officer Godino testified, when he placed Appellant under arrest, he
    put his hands on Appellant’s shoulder and “grabbed [Appellant’s] wrist in an
    attempt to put it behind his back and direct him off the roadway.” Id. at 24.
    However, Officer Godino testified:
    When I put my hands on [Appellant] in an attempt to guide
    him off the roadway . . . , [Appellant] attempted to pull away
    from me. He started by pulling his arms and his shoulders
    away from me in which I then had to tighten my grip to
    ensure that he did not pull away from me entirely and I lost
    complete control. [Appellant] then, if you could imagine,
    thrusted his hip and his groin area away from me as to try to
    gain the control and be able to pull away from me. The faster
    [Appellant] went in an attempt to run away from me or flee
    or make me lose grasp of him, the quicker I had to go. And
    I was more or less behind him catching up to his pace. . . .
    [The other officers saw] the struggle I was having with
    [Appellant]. In the attempt to [gain] control of [Appellant],
    Officer[] Brown and Officer Harvey came . . . to assist me.
    One officer was on each side of me and attempted to pull
    [Appellant] by a shoulder and his lower arm in the area of his
    elbow. And thankfully with the patrol car being there, it
    ceased [Appellant’s] abilities to continue to run from police.
    Id. at 24-25.
    Officer Godino testified that, during the struggle, Appellant “did not
    respond to any commands.            Any commands that were given to him,
    [Appellant] continued to just say, ‘Fuck you, I’m not going anywhere.’” Id.
    at 25-26.
    As Officer Godino testified,
    We used [the police] vehicle as leverage. And I was trying
    to gain enough control to be able to remove my handcuffs
    from my duty belt and place them onto [Appellant] while the
    other two officers held his arms in place for me. The issue
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    though was [Appellant] was continuing to struggle and
    resisting from us by actively and forcefully pulling his arms
    from behind his back and trying to get them to the front of
    his body. Officers had to maintain a high amount of control
    with this because [] we weren’t sure what his actions were .
    . . we weren’t sure if he was in an attempt to pull a weapon
    from his waistband or swing at officers in a manner. So I was
    able to get my handcuffs out while Officer Harvey and Officer
    Brown assisted me. And handcuffs were eventually placed
    on [Appellant] and secured behind his back in which time he
    continued to fight and resist our attempt to gain control.
    Id. at 26.
    As Officer Godino testified, after Appellant was handcuffed, Appellant’s
    wife walked back towards them and began recording the incident on her cell
    phone. When Appellant saw his wife recording the incident, Appellant started
    “just screaming uncontrollably and very loudly.” Id. at 28. The officers asked
    Appellant whether anything was wrong and Appellant “did not respond
    verbally in any way . . . [h]e just continued to scream.” Id. at 28-29. Further,
    Officer Godino testified, Appellant then “dropped all of his weight . . . [h]e just
    passively resisted by going limp and officers had to hold him up at this point.”
    Id. at 30.
    The officers called for Emergency Medical Technicians (“EMTs”) to
    evaluate Appellant.    Id.   To aid the EMTs in evaluating Appellant, Officer
    Godino eventually removed Appellant’s handcuffs. Id. at 31-32. Appellant
    then cooperated enough to lie down onto the EMTs’ stretcher and enter the
    ambulance, where volunteer Kelsey Landsiedel attempted to aid Appellant.
    Id. at 32 and 86-89.
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    Ms. Landsiedel testified that, once Appellant was placed on the
    ambulance, the ambulance drove off towards the hospital. She testified that,
    while in the back of the ambulance, she took Appellant’s vital signs and began
    helping Appellant. Id. at 89-90. However, Appellant would not respond to
    her inquiries. She testified that, since Appellant was unresponsive, she
    performed a sternum rub. Id. at 90. As she testified, when she performed
    the sternum rub:
    [Appellant] lunged forward and swung his arm at me. I
    moved back in the seat away from him. And he said, “I will
    fucking kill you, don’t touch me, let me fucking tell you.” And
    I said, “I was just trying to make sure you were okay. You
    weren’t responding to me.” He was trying to get the seatbelt
    that was under his chest. And I at that point yelled to the
    driver to pull over, that we needed the police back because
    the patient was being combative.
    Id. at 90-91.
    Officer Godino testified that he and Officer Brown were following the
    ambulance in their patrol car when “the 911 dispatcher . . . came over the
    radio and . . . said that the [ambulance] is going to be pulling [over] . . . due
    to [Appellant] becoming combative.”         Id. at 32-33.    As Officer Godino
    testified, after the vehicles pulled over, he and Officer Brown
    entered the ambulance through the rear. We opened up the
    two barn style doors and we could observe [Appellant] now
    flailing about and trying to wiggle himself out of . . . the
    restraint system that the [EMTs use] on a stretcher to
    prevent somebody from falling out of it. And [Appellant] was
    actively trying to free himself of this stretcher and he was
    screaming profusely. And when [Appellant] saw [me] and
    Officer Brown enter the ambulance, he said, “Oh, fuck you
    guys.” And continued to scream and yell. Nothing very
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    specific in nature, but continued to be disorderly within the
    ambulance. So, . . . I told [Appellant], “At this time, due to
    your actions, I have to put the handcuffs back on you.” And
    at that time, I did. I took the handcuffs out and I had to
    secure [Appellant] in front. . . . And then, we assisted the
    EMTs in resecuring [Appellant] with the straps that are on the
    stretcher to try to prevent his movement from coming out of
    the stretcher.
    Id. at 33-34.
    Officer Brown then stayed in the ambulance for the remainder of the
    ride to the hospital. Id. at 34.
    The Commonwealth charged Appellant with aggravated assault,
    resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct.2       Following a bench trial, the trial
    court found Appellant guilty of resisting arrest and disorderly conduct and not
    guilty of aggravated assault. See Trial Court Decision, 10/18/18, at 33-34.
    On February 6, 2019, the trial court sentenced Appellant to serve a term
    of nine months of probation for the resisting arrest conviction and to serve a
    consecutive term of nine months of probation for the disorderly conduct
    conviction. N.T. Sentencing, 2/6/19, at 17. Following the denial of Appellant’s
    post-sentence motion, Appellant filed a timely notice of appeal.         Appellant
    numbers five claims in his brief:
    [1.] Did the Commonwealth present sufficient evidence at
    trial to support [Appellant’s] disorderly conduct conviction?
    [2.] Was [Appellant’s] conviction for disorderly conduct
    against the weight of the evidence presented at trial?
    ____________________________________________
    2   18 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 2702(a)(6), 5104, and 5503(a)(3), respectively.
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    [3.] Did the Commonwealth present sufficient evidence at
    trial that [Appellant] resisted arrest?
    [4.] Was [Appellant’s] conviction for resisting arrest against
    the weight of the evidence presented at trial?
    [5.] Do [Appellant’s] convictions for disorderly conduct and
    resisting arrest contravene public policy?
    Appellant’s Brief at 5.
    First, Appellant claims that the evidence was insufficient to support his
    disorderly conduct conviction.    We review Appellant's sufficiency of the
    evidence challenge under the following standard:
    The standard we apply in reviewing the sufficiency of the
    evidence is whether viewing all the evidence admitted at trial
    in the light most favorable to the verdict winner, there is
    sufficient evidence to enable the fact-finder to find every
    element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. In applying
    the above test, we may not weigh the evidence and substitute
    our judgment for [that of] the fact-finder. In addition, we
    note that the facts and circumstances established by the
    Commonwealth need not preclude every possibility of
    innocence. Any doubts regarding a defendant's guilt may be
    resolved by the fact-finder unless the evidence is so weak
    and inconclusive that as a matter of law no probability of fact
    may be drawn from the combined circumstances. The
    Commonwealth may sustain its burden of proving every
    element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt by means
    of wholly circumstantial evidence. Moreover, in applying the
    above test, the entire record must be evaluated and all
    evidence actually received must be considered. Finally, the
    trier of fact while passing upon the credibility of witnesses
    and the weight of the evidence produced, is free to believe
    all, part or none of the evidence.
    Commonwealth v. Vargas, 
    108 A.3d 858
    , 867-868 (Pa. Super. 2014) (en
    banc), quoting Commonwealth v. Brown, 
    23 A.3d 544
    , 559–560 (Pa.
    Super. 2011) (en banc).
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    Appellant was convicted of disorderly conduct under 18 Pa.C.S.A.
    § 5503(a)(3). This section declares:
    (a) Offense defined.--A person is guilty of disorderly
    conduct if, with intent to cause public inconvenience,
    annoyance or alarm, or recklessly creating a risk thereof, he:
    ...
    (3) uses obscene language, or makes an obscene
    gesture[.]
    18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5503(a)(3).
    On appeal, Appellant claims that the evidence was insufficient to support
    his disorderly conduct conviction under Section 5503(a)(3), as his language
    and gesture to Officer Godino did not rise to the level of obscenity. Appellant’s
    Brief at 19. We agree.
    Our Supreme Court has explained:
    When the judiciary is required to resolve an issue concerning
    the elements of a criminal offense, its task is fundamentally
    one of statutory interpretation, and its overriding purpose
    must be to ascertain and effectuate the legislative intent
    underlying the statute. Generally, the clearest indication of
    legislative intent is the plain language of the statute itself. As
    [the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has] stated:
    To determine the meaning of a statute, a court must first
    determine whether the issue may be resolved by
    reference to the express language of the statute, which is
    to be read according to the plain meaning of the words.
    It is only when the words of the statute are not explicit
    on the point at issue that resort to statutory construction
    is appropriate. However, basic principles of statutory
    construction demand that when the words of a statute are
    clear and free from all ambiguity, the letter of it is not to
    be disregarded under the pretext of pursuing its spirit,
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    and legislative history may be considered only when the
    words of a statute are not explicit.
    Commonwealth v. Dellisanti, 
    876 A.2d 366
    , 369 (Pa.
    2005).     Moreover, every statute shall be construed, if
    possible, to give effect to all its provisions.
    Commonwealth v. Fedorek, 
    946 A.2d 93
    , 98-99 (Pa. 2008) (corrections
    and some quotations and citations omitted).
    Section 5503(a)(3) specifically prohibits the use of “obscene” language
    or gestures, when the language or gestures are done “with [the] intent to
    cause public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, or recklessly creating a risk
    thereof.”   18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5503(a)(3).        As this Court has explained, “for
    purposes of [Pennsylvania’s] disorderly conduct statute prohibiting the use of
    obscene language, language is obscene if it meets the test set forth in Miller
    v. California, 
    413 U.S. 15
     (1973).” Commonwealth v. McCoy, 
    69 A.3d 658
    , 665 (Pa. Super. 2013). Thus, language or gestures are obscene if they
    satisfy the following elements:
    (a) whether “the average person, applying contemporary
    community standards” would find that the work, taken as a
    whole, appeals to the prurient interest, (b) whether the work
    depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual
    conduct specifically defined by the applicable state law, and
    (c) whether the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary,
    artistic, political, or scientific value.
    
    Id.,
     quoting Commonwealth v. Bryner, 
    652 A.2d 909
    , 912 (Pa. Super.
    1995).
    Here, the evidence demonstrates that Appellant communicated multiple
    profanities to Officer Godino. However, giving a person the middle finger and
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    telling a person “fuck you” in an antagonistic manner does not describe sexual
    conduct and does not appeal to anyone’s prurient interest. See McCoy, 
    69 A.3d at 666
     (the defendant shouted “fuck the police” multiple times during a
    funeral procession for a fallen officer; the Superior Court held that the
    evidence was insufficient to support the defendant’s disorderly conduct
    conviction under Section 5503(a)(3) because “there is no evidence that the
    chant was intended to appeal to anyone's prurient interest nor did it describe,
    in a patently offensive way sexual conduct”). Thus, the evidence is insufficient
    to support Appellant’s disorderly conduct conviction.3
    Next, Appellant claims that the evidence is insufficient to support his
    resisting arrest conviction.
    A person commits the crime of resisting arrest “if, with the intent of
    preventing a public servant from effecting a lawful arrest or discharging any
    other duty, the person creates a substantial risk of bodily injury to the public
    servant or anyone else, or employs means justifying or requiring substantial
    force to overcome the resistance.” 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5104. Thus, “Section 5104
    criminalizes two types of conduct intended to prevent a lawful arrest:           the
    creation of a substantial risk of bodily injury to the officer or anyone else or
    means      justifying   or    requiring    a   substantial   force   to   overcome.”
    Commonwealth v. Soto, 
    202 A.3d 80
    , 95 (Pa. Super. 2018) (emphasis in
    original). Further, as we have held, “a valid charge of resisting arrest requires
    ____________________________________________
    3   Given our disposition, Appellant’s second numbered claim on appeal is moot.
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    an underlying lawful arrest, which, in turn, requires that the arresting officer
    possess probable cause.” Id. at 96 (quotations and citations omitted).
    Appellant claims that the evidence is insufficient to support his resisting
    arrest conviction because:     1) “[i]t was only after [Officer Godino placed
    Appellant under arrest] that [Appellant] showed any signs of resistance;” 2)
    “the trial record is devoid of any evidence that [Appellant’s] actions put the
    officers at substantial risk of bodily injury;” 3) Appellant’s “apparent attempt
    to flee does not constitute resisting arrest;” and, 4) Appellant’s underlying
    arrest was unlawful. Appellant’s Brief at 28-29. Appellant’s claims fail.
    Appellant’s first sub-claim contends that the evidence is insufficient to
    support his resisting arrest conviction because he did not resist until after
    Officer Godino placed him under arrest. Id. at 28. We do not understand
    Appellant’s claim. Indeed, we have held that “a valid charge of resisting arrest
    requires an underlying lawful arrest.” Soto, 202 A.3d at 96 (emphasis
    added). Therefore, the fact that Appellant began resisting after he was placed
    under arrest is a sine qua non of the crime of resisting arrest. Appellant’s first
    sub-claim thus fails.
    Next, Appellant claims that his resisting arrest conviction cannot stand
    because he did not “put the officers [or anyone else] at substantial risk of
    bodily injury.” Appellant’s Brief at 28. This claim is frivolous. As the trial
    court explained:    “[b]y precipitating a physical struggle in a temporary
    crosswalk over a 45 mph highway, [Appellant] did create a substantial risk of
    injury to [the officers] and the public patrons and families using the temporary
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    crosswalk.” Trial Court Opinion, 10/18/18, at 19. Appellant’s claim to the
    contrary is frivolous and, thus, fails.
    Appellant’s third sub-claim contends that his “apparent attempt to flee
    does not constitute resisting arrest.” Appellant’s Brief at 28. However, we
    have already determined that the evidence is sufficient to support the
    conclusion that Appellant’s actions “create[d] a substantial risk of bodily injury
    to the” officers and the public.         Thus, we need not consider whether the
    evidence was also sufficient to support the alternate element of resisting
    arrest – that Appellant “employ[ed] means justifying or requiring substantial
    force to overcome the resistance.” See 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5104; see also Soto,
    202 A.3d at 95. Appellant’s third sub-claim is moot.
    Finally, Appellant contends that his resisting arrest conviction must be
    vacated because it was not supported by a valid underlying arrest. Appellant’s
    Brief at 29. This claim fails.
    Even though we have concluded that the evidence is insufficient to
    support     Appellant’s    conviction    for   disorderly   conduct   under   Section
    5503(a)(3), this conclusion does not mean that Appellant’s arrest was
    unlawful.    To be sure, in this case there existed probable cause to arrest
    Appellant for any number of crimes, including disorderly conduct under
    Section 5503(a)(1).4 This is because: Appellant began swearing at Officer
    ____________________________________________
    4 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5503(a)(1) declares: “A person is guilty of disorderly conduct
    if, with intent to cause public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, or recklessly
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    Godino and then aggressively rushed at the officer while the officer was
    on-duty and engaged in a job that required him to escort families across a
    45-mile-per-hour      highway; Officer         Godino   testified that, based upon
    Appellant’s aggressive behavior, the officer feared for his safety; and, after
    Officer Godino told Appellant to leave the middle of the highway, Appellant
    said “Fuck you, I’m not going anywhere.” Appellant’s aggressive, violent, and
    threatening actions – which occurred on a public highway and in the middle
    of a public function – provided Officer Godino with probable cause to arrest
    Appellant for (at a minimum) disorderly conduct under Section 5503(a)(1).5
    As such, Appellant’s final sub-claim fails and we conclude that the evidence
    was sufficient to support Appellant’s resisting arrest conviction.
    Next, Appellant claims that his resisting arrest conviction was against
    the weight of the evidence. This claim is waived, as Appellant’s post-sentence
    motion merely presented a boilerplate challenge to the weight of the evidence.
    See Appellant’s Post-Sentence Motion, 2/12/19, at 1-3; Commonwealth v.
    Holmes, 
    461 A.2d 1268
    , 1270 (Pa. Super. 1983) (en banc) (holding:               “a
    ____________________________________________
    creating a risk thereof, he: (1) engages in fighting or threatening, or in violent
    or tumultuous behavior.” 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5503(a)(1).
    5 Indeed, during trial, Appellant’s counsel admitted that there was sufficient
    evidence to support Appellant’s conviction under Section 5503(a)(1). See
    N.T. Trial, 3/27/18, at 124 (“And the disorderly conduct that he’s charged is
    5503(a)(3). . . . If he was charged with 5503(a)(1) or 5503(a)(4),
    there is no argument here. But the Commonwealth can’t get up here with
    its charging document and take a square peg and try to ram it into a round
    hold. They charged it.”) (emphasis added); see also id. at 124-130.
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    post-verdict motion, [] that . . . ‘the verdict was against the weight of the
    evidence,’ will preserve no issue for appellate review unless the motion goes
    on to specify in what respect . . . why the verdict was against the weight of
    the evidence”).
    Finally, Appellant claims that his conviction for resisting arrest
    contravenes public policy. Appellant’s Brief at 30. According to Appellant,
    “[a]llowing law enforcement officers to arrest individuals who are merely
    exercising their right to free speech under the First Amendment is an
    outrageous result that should not be affirmed by” the Superior Court.       Id.
    This claim is frivolous.
    In Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire, the United States Supreme Court
    declared:
    Allowing the broadest scope to the language and purpose of
    the Fourteenth Amendment, it is well understood that the
    right of free speech is not absolute at all times and under all
    circumstances. There are certain well-defined and narrowly
    limited classes of speech, the prevention and punishment of
    which have never been thought to raise any Constitutional
    problem. These include the lewd and obscene, the profane,
    the libelous, and the insulting or “fighting” words those which
    by their very utterance inflict injury or tend to incite an
    immediate breach of the peace. It has been well observed
    that such utterances are no essential part of any exposition
    of ideas, and are of such slight social value as a step to truth
    that any benefit that may be derived from them is clearly
    outweighed by the social interest in order and morality.
    Resort to epithets or personal abuse is not in any proper
    sense communication of information or opinion safeguarded
    by the Constitution, and its punishment as a criminal act
    would raise no question under that instrument.
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    Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire, 
    315 U.S. 568
    , 571-572 (1942) (citations,
    footnotes, and some quotations omitted).
    As was already explained above, the evidence in this case is sufficient
    to support Appellant’s resisting arrest conviction.6   Certainly, in this case:
    Appellant repeatedly swore at Officer Godino and then aggressively rushed at
    the officer while the officer was on-duty and engaged in a job that required
    him to escort families across a highway; Officer Godino testified that, based
    upon Appellant’s aggressive behavior, the officer feared for his safety; after
    Officer Godino told Appellant to leave the middle of the highway, Appellant
    said “Fuck you, I’m not going anywhere;” and, after Officer Godino told
    Appellant he was under arrest, Appellant began resisting the officer in the
    middle of a highway, where the posted speed limit is 45 miles per hour.
    Simply stated, Appellant’s aggressive actions in this case threatened to “incite
    an immediate breach of the peace” and, thus, went far beyond the limits of
    what the First Amendment protects. See 
    id.
     As such, Appellant’s final claim
    on appeal fails.
    In conclusion, we vacate Appellant’s disorderly conduct conviction.
    Further, since our decision may have disturbed the trial court’s sentencing
    scheme, we remand the case for resentencing.
    ____________________________________________
    6 We need not address this public policy issue as it relates to Appellant’s
    disorderly conduct convictions as we are vacating that conviction.
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    Judgment of sentence vacated.      Case remanded for resentencing.
    Jurisdiction relinquished.
    Judgment Entered.
    Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
    Prothonotary
    Date: 6/18/2020
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