Opinion
1207 WDA 2020 1208 WDA 2020 1209 WDA 2020 1210 WDA 2020 1211 WDA 2020 1212 WDA 2020 1213 WDA 2020 J-S24022-21
10-22-2021
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee v. ANTONIO DION FERGUSON Appellant COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee v. ANTONIO FERGUSON Appellant COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee v. ANTONIO FERGUSON Appellant COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee v. ANTONIO DION FERGUSON Appellant COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee v. ANTONIO DION FERGUSON Appellant COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee v. ANTONIO DION FERGUSON Appellant COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee v. ANTONIO DION FERGUSON Appellant
NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
Appeal from the PCRA Order Entered September 14, 2020 In the Court of Common Pleas of Erie County Criminal Division at No(s): CP-25-CR-0001279-2004, CP-25-CR-0001280-2004, CP-25-CR-0001281-2004, CP-25-CR-0001282-2004, CP-25-CR-0001283-2004, CP-25-CR-0001284-2004, CP-25-CR-0001285-2004
BEFORE: DUBOW, J., KING, J., and STEVENS, P.J.E. [*]
JUDGMENT ORDER
KING, J.
Appellant, Antonio Dion Ferguson, appeals from the order entered in the Erie County Court of Common Pleas, which dismissed his serial petition filed under the Post Conviction Relief Act ("PCRA"), at 42 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 9541-9546. We dismiss the appeals as untimely filed.
The relevant facts and procedural history of these appeals are as follows. Appellant was convicted of multiple counts of burglary and theft. On January 14, 2005, the court sentenced Appellant to an aggregate term of twenty-four (24) years and four (4) months to seventy-six (76) years' imprisonment. This Court affirmed the judgment of sentence, and our Supreme Court denied Appellant's petition for allowance of appeal on August 9, 2006. Appellant did not seek further review.
Appellant filed the current, serial PCRA petition on September 16, 2019. The court appointed counsel, who filed an amended PCRA petition with a caption listing seven (7) separate trial court docket numbers. The court conducted an evidentiary hearing on the matter. On September 14, 2020, the court dismissed Appellant's PCRA petition.
On September 22, 2020, Appellant filed a single notice of appeal with a caption listing the same seven (7) docket numbers included on the amended PCRA petition. On November 2, 2020, this Court issued a rule to show cause as to why Appellant's appeal should not be quashed in light of Commonwealth v. Walker, 646 Pa. 456, 185 A.3d 969 (2018) (stating that practice of filing single notice of appeal from order involving more than one docket violates Pa.R.A.P. 341; failure to file separate appeals under these circumstances generally requires appellate court to quash appeal). Before responding to the show cause order, Appellant filed the instant notices of appeal in the PCRA court on November 5, 2020. These notices of appeal corresponded to each of the seven (7) docket numbers listed in the caption of the amended PCRA petition.
This Court docketed the appeal at 999 WDA 2020.
On November 9, 2020, Appellant responded to the show cause order and claimed that the newly filed notices of appeal corrected any defects under Walker. This Court discharged the rule to show cause on November 17, 2020, advising the parties that the panel assigned to this case may revisit the issue. On November 23, 2020, this Court consolidated the instant appeals sua sponte.
As a prefatory matter, we must address the timeliness of the notices of appeal at issue. "Time limitations for taking appeals are strictly construed and cannot be extended as a matter of grace." Commonwealth v. Burks, 102 A.3d 497, 500 (Pa.Super. 2014). "This Court can raise the matter sua sponte, as the issue is one of jurisdiction to entertain the appeal." Id. This Court has no jurisdiction to entertain an untimely appeal. Commonwealth v. Patterson, 940 A.2d 493, 497 (Pa.Super. 2007), appeal denied, 599 Pa. 691, 960 A.2d 838 (2008). "[T]he notice of appeal…shall be filed within 30 days after the entry of the order from which the appeal is taken." Pa.R.A.P. 903(a).
Instantly, following the denial of PCRA relief, the appeal period began to run from September 14, 2020. See id. Therefore, Appellant untimely filed the instant notices of appeal on November 5, 2020, more than thirty days after the denial of PCRA relief. Id. Accordingly, we dismiss these appeals.
Appeals dismissed.
Judgment Entered.
[*] Former Justice specially assigned to the Superior Court.