Com. v. Ahlborn

• Citation: 548 Pa. 544,699 A.2d 718
• Parties: COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee, v. Clarence A. AHLBORN, Appellant.
• Decision Date: 19 August 1997
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Pennsylvania

Page 718

699 A.2d 718

548 Pa. 544

COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Appellee, v. Clarence A. AHLBORN, Appellant.

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Submitted May 13, 1997.

Decided Aug. 19, 1997.

[548 Pa. 545] John D. Ceraso, Arnold, for Clarence A. Ahlborn.

Christian Scherer, Pittsburgh, for the Com.

Before FLAHERTY, C.J., and ZAPPALA, CAPPY, CASTILLE, NIGRO and NEWMAN, JJ.

OPINION OF THE COURT

FLAHERTY, Chief Justice.

This is an appeal by allowance from an order of the Superior Court which affirmed an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County denying relief under the Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA), 42 Pa.C.S. § 9541 et seq. At issue is whether one who has filed a PCRA petition while serving a sentence of imprisonment remains eligible for relief in the event that, prior to any final adjudication of the petition, he is released from custody.

On May 4, 1990, the appellant, Clarence A. Ahlborn, pled guilty to three counts of driving under the influence (DUI) and one count of accident resulting in death or injury. Appellant was sentenced to forty-eight hours to twenty-three months on the first DUI count, a concurrent term of thirty days to twenty-three months on the second DUI count, a consecutive term of four to twenty-three months on the third DUI count, and a concurrent term of thirty days to twenty-three months on the accident resulting in death or injury count. On May 24, 1990, appellant filed a pro se motion to withdraw his guilty plea. A hearing on the motion was scheduled, but, for reasons not apparent on the record, the motion was never adjudicated. On December 9, 1993, appellant filed a pro se PCRA petition. Subsequently, counsel was appointed and an amended petition was filed on January 25, 1994. The petition alleged that appellant was misled as to the nature and consequences of his plea. It also alleged that he was never afforded a hearing on the motion to withdraw his plea.

A PCRA hearing was scheduled for February 17, 1994. On February 14, 1994, however, appellant finished serving his sentence. He was unconditionally released from prison. The scheduled hearing was then continued, and, on June 8, 1994, the PCRA petition was dismissed on the ground that appellant was no longer eligible for relief. The court reasoned that relief is available only to persons still serving sentences of imprisonment, probation, or parole. On appeal, the Superior Court affirmed en banc. We too affirm.

Eligibility for relief under the PCRA is governed by 42 Pa.C.S. § 9543, which provides in pertinent part:

(a) General rule.--To be eligible for relief under this subchapter, the petitioner must plead and prove by a preponderance of the evidence all of the following:

(1) That the petitioner has been convicted of a crime under the laws of this Commonwealth and is:

(i) currently serving a sentence of imprisonment, probation or parole for the crime;

(ii) awaiting execution of a sentence of death for the crime; or

(iii) serving a sentence which must expire before the person may commence serving the disputed sentence.

(Emphasis added).

Appellant contends that this statutory provision requires only that he have been serving a sentence at the time when he filed his petition, and that it is of no consequence that he finished serving his sentence before there was an adjudication of whether relief was warranted. ^* We do not agree. Appellant essentially construes the first sentence of the eligibility provision as though it began with the words, "To be eligible to file a petition ...," rather than with the actual words, "To be eligible for relief...." Such a construction constitutes an obvious departure from the language of the statute. The time of filing a petition is not the same as the time that a decision is rendered regarding eligibility for relief. Further, appellant's construction ignores the statute's requirement that a PCRA petitioner "plead and prove" that he "is currently serving a sentence...." The statute clearly contemplates that the petitioner will be serving a sentence at both the pleading and proof stages of the proceeding.

It is well established that when the language of a statute is clear and unambiguous, it must be given effect in accordance with its plain and obvious meaning. Commonwealth v. Corporan, 531 Pa. 348, 351, 613 A.2d 530, 531 (1992); Commonwealth v. Kriston, 527 Pa. 90, 94, 588 A.2d 898, 899 (1991); Commonwealth v. Bursick, 526 Pa. 6, 10, 584 A.2d 291, 293 (1990); Commonwealth v. Bell, 512 Pa. 334, 339-40, 516 A.2d 1172, 1175 (1986); Statutory Construction Act of 1972, 1 Pa.C.S. § 1921(b). Here, the denial of relief for a petitioner who has finished serving his sentence is required by the plain language of the statute. To be eligible for relief a petitioner must be currently serving a sentence of imprisonment, probation or parole. To grant relief at a time when appellant is not currently serving such a sentence would be to ignore the language of the statute.

Appellant asserts that, despite having been released from custody, he will continue to suffer consequences of his convictions. Specifically, he cites a driver's license suspension and the possibility of future sentencing and recidivist enhancements. Appellant argues that, because convictions can result in ongoing consequences, the legislature would not have intended that review under the PCRA would be unobtainable. The search for legislative intent is at an end, however, where the language used by the legislature is clear. Commonwealth v. Bursick, 526 Pa. at 10, 584 A.2d at 293 ("We are constrained ... to apply statutory language enacted by the legislature rather than speculate as to whether the legislative spirit or intent differs from what has been plainly expressed in the relevant statutes."); Commonwealth v. Bell, 512 Pa. at 339-40, 516 A.2d at 1175 (When the language of a statute is plain and clear, it is inappropriate to inquire further into legislative intent.). See also Statutory Construction Act of 1972, 1 Pa.C.S....