Opinion
No. 518 MAL 2022
03-15-2023
COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Respondent v. Jonathan RICHARDS, Petitioner
ORDER
PER CURIAM
AND NOW , this 15th day of March, 2023, the Petition for Allowance of Appeal is GRANTED . The issues, as stated by petitioner, are:
(1) In light of Alleyne v. United States , 570 U.S. 99, 133 S.Ct. 2151, 186 L.Ed.2d 314 (2013) is it not unconstitutional to consider an acceptance of ARD as a prior offense for sentencing purposes without the procedural protections afforded by Alleyne , i.e., a prior offense can only be determined by proof beyond a reasonable doubt?
(2) Is it not fundamentally unfair and a violation of due process to equate a prior acceptance of ARD with a prior conviction for purposes of a recidivist mandatory minimum sentence even though that acceptance involved no proof of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt?
Petitioner's Motion for Stay of Proceedings is DENIED .