Commonwealth v. Wellmon

Summary

The Pennsylvania Superior Court affirmed Jamar Wellmon's judgment of sentence for robbery, retail theft, and simple assault. The court held that the statutory presumption under 18 Pa.C.S. § 3929(c), arising from intentional concealment of unpurchased merchandise, remained applicable and supported the retail theft conviction. Because the robbery challenge depended on the retail theft challenge, the court also rejected the robbery claim.

Holdings

1. The presumption in Section 3929(c) remains valid and applies when a defendant intentionally conceals unpurchased merchandise, including by placing it in a shopping bag. Because Wellmon offered no testimony or other evidence to rebut the presumption, the evidence supported the inference that he intended to deprive Rite Aid of the merchandise.
2. The robbery conviction was supported because Wellmon's challenge depended entirely on his unsuccessful argument that the evidence was insufficient to prove retail theft; having rejected that argument, the court rejected the robbery challenge as well.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the evidence was sufficient to support Wellmon's retail-theft conviction, including whether the statutory presumption arising from intentional concealment of unpurchased merchandise applied.
2. Whether the evidence was sufficient to support Wellmon's robbery conviction where the robbery charge depended on proof of an underlying theft.

Disposition

affirmed