Com. v. Guilford, T.

J-S29042-18
NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
: PENNSYLVANIA
:
v. :
:
:
THOMAS GUILFORD :
:
Appellant : No. 3252 EDA 2017
Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence August 25, 2017
In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Criminal Division at
No(s): CP-51-CR-0000322-2015
BEFORE: PANELLA, J., MURRAY, J., and STEVENS, P.J.E.*
JUDGMENT ORDER BY STEVENS, P.J.E.: FILED JUNE 04, 2018
Appellant Thomas Guilford appeals from the judgment of sentence
entered by the trial court upon remand from this Court for resentencing. After
careful review, we affirm.
On December 9, 2015, the trial court convicted Appellant of Persons not
to possess a firearm, Firearms not to be carried without a license, and Carrying
a firearm in public in Philadelphia.1 On April 22, 2016, the trial court
sentenced Appellant to five to ten years’ imprisonment for illegally possessing
a firearm, along with a consecutive five years’ probation for carrying a firearm
without a license and a concurrent five years’ probation for illegally carrying a
firearm in Philadelphia.
____________________________________________
1 18 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 6105, 6106, and 6108, respectfully.
____________________________________
* Former Justice specially assigned to the Superior Court.
J-S29042-18
On April 29, 2016, Appellant filed a motion for reconsideration of his
sentence, in which he claimed, inter alia, that his sentence was excessive.
While this motion was pending, Appellant filed a notice of appeal. On May 31,
2016, the trial court denied Appellant’s motion for reconsideration.
Thereafter, Appellant complied with the trial court’s direction to file a concise
statement of errors complained of on appeal pursuant to Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b).
In Appellant’s Rule 1925(b) statement, Appellant again indicated that he felt
his sentence was excessive.
However, as Appellant did not raise his claim of the excessiveness of his
sentence in his appellate brief, this Court did not address this specific issue on
appeal. See Commonwealth v. Guilford, 1534 EDA 2016 (Pa.Super. May
9, 2017) (unpublished memorandum). Nevertheless, this Court vacated
Appellant’s judgment of sentence and remanded the case to the trial court for
the limited purpose of issuing a sentencing order that reflected whether
Appellant was entitled to credit for time served.
On August 25, 2017, the trial court imposed Appellant’s original
sentence and specifically indicated that Appellant was to be credited for any
time served. On September 5, 2017, Appellant filed another motion for
reconsideration of sentence, which the trial court subsequently denied.
Appellant again filed a notice of appeal and raised a challenge to the
excessiveness of his sentence in his Rule 1925(b) statement and in his
appellate brief. The trial court found that Appellant had waived his challenge
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J-S29042-18
to the trial court’s sentencing discretion by failing to present and develop this
issue in his first brief to this Court. Trial Court Opinion, 10/30/17, at 4-5.
After reviewing the record, we observe that Appellant failed to raise this
specific argument relating to the excessiveness of his sentence on his initial
direct appeal before this Court. Instead, Appellant chose to claim the trial
court erred in rulings related to the denial of his suppression motion, the denial
of his Rule 600 motion, and his claim of entitlement to credit for time served.
As a result, this issue was waived. See Wirth v. Commonwealth, 626 Pa.
124, 149-50, 95 A.3d 822, 837 (2014)) (holding “where an appellate brief
fails to ... develop an issue in any other meaningful fashion capable of review,
that claim is waived. It is not the obligation of an appellate court to formulate
appellant's arguments for him”) (citation omitted). Appellant is not entitled to
a second round of appellate review on direct appeal of this waived claim.
For all of the foregoing reasons, we affirm.
Judgment of sentence affirmed.
Judgment Entered.
Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary
Date: 6/4/18
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