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Com. v. Andrus, C.
Citation: Not availableDocket: 1868 EDA 2018
Court: Superior Court of Pennsylvania; September 9, 2019; Pennsylvania; State Appellate Court
Original Court Document: View Document
Craig Andrus appeals his June 4, 2018 judgment of sentence from the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas, where he pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and illegal possession of a firearm, resulting in a sentence of 11½ to 23 years. The appeal follows a pro se notice filed by Andrus, expressing a desire to withdraw his guilty plea, despite being represented by counsel. Following a remand by the Superior Court to assess whether his counsel had abandoned him, the trial court confirmed abandonment and appointed new counsel, Attorney Gina Amoriello. Amoriello failed to timely file a concise statement of errors as required. Instead, she sought another remand for Andrus to file a motion to withdraw his guilty plea. The court ruled that a remand was unnecessary since the record showed that Andrus had entered his plea knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently. Subsequently, Andrus’s appeal was initially dismissed due to a lack of an appellate brief but was later reinstated upon reconsideration. The sole issue on appeal pertains to whether Amoriello was ineffective for not filing a timely motion to withdraw the guilty plea. However, the court noted that claims of ineffective assistance of counsel are generally not addressed on direct appeal and should be reserved for collateral review. The trial court had already addressed the voluntariness of the plea. The judgment of sentence is affirmed, preserving Andrus's rights under the Post Conviction Relief Act.