Commonwealth ex rel. Perry v. Maroney
Commonwealth ex rel. Perry v. Maroney
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
Appellant, following his arrest on a charge of murder on April 7, 1943, gave the police, after interrogation, both an oral and written statement admitting his guilt. Appellant in his petition now contends that at the time of his arrest, (1) he was only 17 years of age; (2) that he was suffering from a mental disorder and was “very frightened”; (3) that the arresting officer used threats, such as, he would “get his head bashed in unless he confessed”, and (4) constant interrogation to obtain his confession; (5) that he was not in
Appellant was arrested at 2:00 a.m. on April 7,1943. By his own petition, he admits that the interrogation began at 9 :00 a.m. and at 11:20 a.m. a recorded confession was taken. The record does not reveal that he was overborne or that the confession was not freely made.
Appellant bases his contention on the holding of the United States Supreme Court in Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478 (1964). It is to be noted, however, that the events here occurred in 1943, some 21 years before the decision in Escobedo was rendered, and the United States Supreme Court, in Johnson v. New Jersey, 384 U.S. 719 (1966), specifically held that the decision rendered in Escobedo was not retroactive.
As to appellant’s contention that he was without counsel at the time of his preliminary hearing, we said, in Com. ex rel. Fox v. Maroney, 417 Pa. 308, 311, 207 A. 2d 810 (1965) : “We have held in a growing list of cases that, ‘in the absence of unusual circumstances which transform the proceeding into a critical stage, lack of counsel at preliminary hearing in this Commonwealth does not constitute a deprivation of due process.’ Com. ex rel. Butler v. Rundle, 416 Pa. 321, 324-25, 206 A. 2d 283, 285 (1965).” We find no averment of any facts in this petition which would cause us to deviate from the aforementioned rule. Furthermore, appellant had counsel appointed to represent bi™
Order affirmed.
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