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Commonwealth v. Seals

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
Jan 28, 1977
368 A.2d 278 (Pa. 1977)

Opinion

Submitted January 14, 1976.

Decided January 28, 1977.

Appeal from the Court of Common Pleas, Trial Division, Criminal Section, Philadelphia County, at No. 139 April Term, 1974, Francis A. Biunno, J.

Leonard S. Wissow, Philadelphia, for appellant.

F. Emmett Fitzpatrick, Dist. Atty., Steven H. Goldblatt, Asst. Dist. Atty., Chief, Appeals Div., Bonnie B. Leadbetter, Philadelphia, for appellee.

Before JONES, C. J., and EAGEN, O'BRIEN, ROBERTS, POMEROY, NIX and MANDERINO, JJ.


OPINION OF THE COURT


Appellant, Joseph Seals, was indicted for murder, voluntary manslaughter, and involuntary manslaughter, tried before a jury, and convicted of murder in the second degree. Post-verdict motions, alleging that the jury's verdict was not supported by the "weight and sufficiency" of the evidence, were filed and denied, appellant was sentenced to six to twenty years imprisonment, and this appeal followed.

Appellant argues here that, for various reasons, he was denied the effective assistance of counsel at trial. Our review of the circumstances of this case convinces us that trial counsel's stewardship of appellant's trial had a reasonable basis designed to effectuate appellant's interest, and was therefore not ineffective. See Commonwealth ex rel. Washington v. Maroney, 427 Pa. 599, 235 A.2d 349 (1967).

Judgment of sentence affirmed.


Summaries of

Commonwealth v. Seals

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
Jan 28, 1977
368 A.2d 278 (Pa. 1977)
Case details for

Commonwealth v. Seals

Case Details

Full title:COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania v. Joseph SEALS, Appellant

Court:Supreme Court of Pennsylvania

Date published: Jan 28, 1977

Citations

368 A.2d 278 (Pa. 1977)
368 A.2d 278