Commonwealth v. Berry, J., Aplt.

Summary

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that a sentencing court may not consider a defendant’s prior arrests that did not result in conviction as a factor in imposing a sentence. The Court reversed the Superior Court’s affirmation of the sentence and remanded for resentencing, finding the trial court’s reliance on Berry’s arrest record was a legal error. The decision was based on statutory interpretation of the Pennsylvania Sentencing Code and rejected the Superior Court’s line of cases permitting such consideration. The Court declined to reach the federal due‑process claim because the statutory issue resolved the case.