Thursday, July 12, 2012

child abuse - expungement - standard of proof - clear and convincing

G.V. v. DPW - Cmwlth. Court - July 12, 2012 (5-2)

http://www.pacourts.us/OpPosting/Cwealth/out/125CD11_7-12-12.pdf

The "clear and convincing" standard must apply to child abuse registry cases, since basing an indicated report on substantial evidence, as was done by the ALJ and as set forth in the Law, "does not adequately protect the rights of the accused perpetrator given the nature of the proceedings and the adverse consequences which flow from a finding of abuse and registration in the statewide Child[Line] Registry." J.S. v. Department of Public Welfare, 528 Pa. 243, 596 A.2d 1114 (1991). The standard of proof in expungement proceedings must be one of clear and convincing evidence.

Article I, Section 1 of the Pennsylvania Constitution provides: "All men are born equally free and independent, and have certain inherent and indefeasible rights, among which are those of enjoying and defending life and liberty, of acquiring, possessing and protecting . . . reputation . . . ." Pa. Const. art. I, § 1. Because reputation is a protected fundamental interest under Article I, Section 1 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, the loss of reputation, the stigma associated with being named a child abuser, and the effect of such a determination on one's ability to gain employment all demand a higher standard of proof in order to satisfy due process.

The court applied a balancing test under R. v. Department of Public Welfare, 535 Pa. 440, 636 A.2d 142 (1994) and Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319, 335 (1976), using the following factors to be considered: First, the private interest that will be affected by the official action; second, the risk of an erroneous deprivation of such interest through the procedures used, and the probable value, if any, of additional or substitute procedural safeguards; and finally, the Government‟s interest, including the function involved and the fiscal and administrative burdens that the additional or substitute procedural requirements will entail.

After weighing these factors, the Court held that "substantial evidence must support a determination of whether child abuse has occurred, but there must be clear and convincing evidence of child abuse to maintain statutorily-designated information from an indicated report on the ChildLine Registry."

convictions - expungement - underage drinking, simple assault

Commonwealth v. Furrer - Superior Court - July 11, 2012

http://www.pacourts.us/OpPosting/Superior/out/s39012_12.pdf

Appellate court affirmed refusal to expunge simple assault conviction, but reversed and ordered expungment of conviction for underage drinking.

Expungement of criminal records is governed by statute. See Hunt v. Pennsylvania State Police, 603 Pa. 156, 166, 983 A.2d 627, 633 (2009) (citing 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 9122). “The decision to grant or deny a request for expungement of an arrest record lies in the sound discretion of the trial judge, who must balance the competing interests of the petitioner and the Commonwealth.

There is a long-standing right in this Commonwealth to petition for expungement of a criminal arrest record, a right that is adjunct of due process. Carlacci v. Mazaleski, [798 A.2d 186,

Judicial analysis and evaluation of a petition to expunge depend upon the manner of disposition of the charges against the petitioner. When an individual has been convicted of the offenses charged, then expungement of criminal history records may be granted only under very limited circumstances that are set forth by statute. 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122; Hunt v. Pennsylvania State Police, 604 Pa. 156, 983 A.2d 627, 633 (2009). Commonwealth v. Wallace, ___ A.3d ___, 2012 WL 1893526 at *2 (Pa. Super. filed May 25, 2012) (citing Commonwealth v. Moto, ___ Pa. ___, ___, 23 A.3d 989, 993-994 (2011)).

Here, the record establishes the following undisputed facts: (1) Appellant was convicted of a violation of section 6308 in the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County; (2) at age 22, he petitioned the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County, seeking expungement of, inter alia, the section 6308 conviction; and (3) he satisfied all terms and conditions of the sentence imposed for the section 6308 violation. Therefore, pursuant to the plain, mandatory language of 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 9122(a)(3) the trial court was required to expunge all criminal history record information related to the section 6308 conviction. In not doing so, the trial court abused its discretion.
Expungment of a simple assault conviction is not mandatory under sec. 9122 and does not fit the discretionary criteria under sec. 9122(b), since the appellant here is not over age 70, is still alive, and simple assault is not a summary offense.

Proof of service - mailbox rule

Szymanski v. Dotey and Jenkins - Superior Court - July 11, 2012

http://www.pacourts.us/OpPosting/Superior/out/a08017_12.pdf

The mailbox rule provides that “depositing in the post office a properly addressed, prepaid letter raises a natural presumption, founded in common experience, that it reached its destination by due course of mail.” Jenson v. McCorkell, 154 Pa. 323, 325, 26 A. 366, 367 (Pa. 1893). As the Pennsylvania Supreme Court noted: “The overwhelming weight of statistics clearly indicates that letters properly mailed and deposited in the post office are received by the addressees.” Meierdierck v. Miller, 394 Pa. 484, 487, 147 A.2d 406, 408 (Pa. 1959). Thus, “[e]vidence that a letter has been mailed will ordinarily be sufficient to permit a jury to find that the letter was in fact received by the party to whom it was addressed.” Shafer v. A.I.T.S., Inc., 428 A.2d 152, 156 (Pa. Super. 1981).

However, “evidence of actual mailing is not required.” Commonwealth Dep’t of Transp. v. Brayman Constr. Corp., 513 A.2d 562, 566 (Pa. Commw. 1986). The Superior Court has held that “when a letter has been written and signed in the usual course of business and placed in the regular place of mailing, evidence of the custom of the establishment as to the mailing of such letters is receivable as evidence that it was duly mailed.” Christie v. Open Pantry Food Marts Inc. of Delaware Valley, 352 A.2d 165, 166-67 (Pa. Super. 1975).

To trigger the presumption of receipt, “the party who is seeking the benefit of the presumption must adduce evidentiary proof that the letter was signed in the usual course of business and placed in the regular place of mailing.” Geise v. Nationwide Life & Annuity Co. of America, 939 A.2d 409, 423 (Pa. Super. 2007); Shafer, 428 A.2d at 156. “A presumption that a letter was received cannot be based on a presumption that the letter was mailed. A presumption cannot be based on a presumption.” Geise, 939 A.2d at 423. Documentary evidence of mailing or testimony from the author that a document was mailed may establish the presumption of receipt. See Grasse, 606 A.2d at 546 (holding appellees met burden of proof of mailing by producing certified driving record which included document showing notice was mailed); cf. Meierdierck, 394 Pa. at 487, 147 A.2d at 408 (holding that “[w]here the use of the mails as a means of acceptance is authorized or implied from the surrounding circumstances, the acceptance is complete by posting the letter in normal mail channels, without more.”).

In this case, the evidence did not establish that the relevant notice (setting a trial date) was mailed, or that it was prepared in the ordinary course of business and placed in the regular place of mailing. See Christie, 352 A.2d at 166- 67. The evidence was only that the court administrator was the author of the notice. But she did not testify that she placed the notice in her office’s usual place for outgoing mail, nor did she testify that she or any other employee mailed it via any method of mailing. Pursuant to Brayman and Christie, the testimony did not constitute competent evidence of mailing because she offered no testimony or evidence that she had placed the notice in the office’s regular place of mailing or on the custom as to the mailing of such notices. See Brayman, 513 A.2d at 566; Christie, 352 A.2d at 166-67.

The testimony also failed to conform to the rule set forth in Meierdierck, that introducing testimony that the notice was mailed suffices to establish the mailbox rule’s presumption of receipt. See Meierdierck, 394 Pa. at 487, 147 A.2d at 408. Although the witness testified that she was the author of the notice, she did not testify that the notice was mailed. Commonwealth v. Thomas, 814 A.2d 754 (Pa. Super. 2002).