Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Rahiem Cardel Fant

Summary

Justice Wecht concurs in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court's decision concerning whether inmate “visit conversations” fall within the Pennsylvania Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act exception for telephone calls to or from inmates. He agrees with the Majority's interpretation and application of the statutory exception but disagrees with addressing the Commonwealth's alternative argument that no interception occurred, concluding that the argument was not preserved for appellate review.

Holdings

1. The concurrence joins the majority's resolution that the relevant “visit conversations” fall within the statutory exception for interception of telephone calls from or to an inmate and agrees with the majority's application of that exception to the suppression court's factual findings.
2. The concurrence concludes that the majority should not reach the Commonwealth's alternative argument that no interception occurred because the Commonwealth failed to raise and preserve that issue in the Superior Court while acting as the appellant there.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the inmate-related “visit conversations” fell within the Pennsylvania Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act exception permitting interception of telephone calls from or to an inmate in a facility.
2. Whether the Commonwealth could rely on the right-for-any-reason doctrine to assert, for the first time in the Supreme Court, that there was no interception under the Wiretap Act.
3. Whether the Commonwealth's failure to raise and preserve the interception issue in the Superior Court barred appellate review of that alternative argument.

Disposition

other