Superior Court 6/11/2008 - COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. DESMOND MARKEL HAMMOND

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. DESMOND MARKEL HAMMOND
No. 1282 MDA 2007 2008 PA Super 128 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 6/11/2008
Appeal from the Order entered June 28, 2007 In the Court of Common Pleas of Schuylkill County Criminal at No(s): CP-54-CR-0000500-2004
Before: STEVENS, PANELLA, and HUDOCK, JJ.
Opinion by: STEVENS, J.
Dissenting Opinion by: HUDOCK, J.
The Commonwealth appeals from the order entered in the Court of Common Pleas of Schuylkill County, which granted Appellee’s petition filed under the Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA), 42 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 9541-9546 vacated Appellee’s judgment of sentence, and directed a new trial due to the ineffective assistance of trial counsel, coupled with after-discovered evidence. The Commonwealth contends the PCRA court erred in granting Appellee a new trial on the basis (1) trial counsel was ineffective in failing to call as a witness and investigate properly Achille Walker and (2) after-discovered evidence in the form of Kelvin Robertson’s recanted testimony. We reverse the order granting a new trial and reinstate Appellee’s judgment of sentence.

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