How Do I Put Money On An Inmate's Books?

"My husband is locked up at the House of Corrections. How do I put money on his books?"

The House of Corrections is a local, Philadelphia County jail. You can go directly to the jail at 8001 State Road and submit either cash or a postal money order (with your husband's photo number, sometimes called a PP number or PPN) and the jail will credit your husband's jail account. Inmates are not permitted to have actual cash, which is considered contraband, but they can use their inmate accounts, or 'books', to shop at the prison commissary or to send away for lawful products and merchandise.

You can also mail a postal money order to the jail. Mail the letter directly to your husband, with his photo number next to his name, just like any other letter you would send. The jail opens inmate mail to check for contraband, and will remove the money order and place the funds on his books.

Be sure not to send cash to the jail through the mail. Also, make sure you fill out the money order with your husband's name AND his photo number. If you fail to put the photo number on the money order, it will probably be rejected and returned to you.

If your husband has a bank account which is not a joint bank account with you, the bank won't let you withdraw money without obtaining a power of attorney. Each bank has its own power of attorney forms, and a standard POA form will be rejected. There's some footwork involved if the only money to put on his books is from such an account. You'd have to mail him a power of attorney, have him sign it and have it notarized, then return it to you. Then you would file it with the bank, and a few days later, you'll be able to withdraw the cash. At Hochberg, Levin & Zeiger, we have gone through this process on behalf of clients without local family. It is a somewhat time-consuming process, but it isn't difficult.

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DUI Refusal

DUI Refusal. I thought I had heard it all. I got locked up by the police and when I was at the police station the lazy officer said to me, "look we both know how drunk you are, will you just sign this waiver of intoxication so I don't have to take you to the hospital to get your blood drawn." And so I signed. Later my attorney told me what I signed was a refusal acknowledgment, not a waiver. Now I am being prosecuted for a refusal dui. Can the cops do this? Can I beat this case?

You can combat a refusal either through a motion to suppress the refusal or through arguing at trial that in fact it was not a refusal. The type of refusal that you have described above is the kind that you would fight at trial. However, your story is so ridiculous that only a jury will buy it-no bench trial if this is your defense.

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Thank You

Thank you for your question. An experienced attorney will attempt to answer your question as soon as possible.

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Self Defense In Your Home

If I am in my house, I own and possess a gun legally, and an intruder tries to break in to my house, can I shoot them without the risk of prosecution? Does the answer change if the person dies when I shoot them?

Under the common law and under the current Pennsylvania statutory law, the issue is called justifiable use of deadly force; whether the person dies is not relevant. Under the current law, if you are in your home someone tries to break into your home, and you are prosecuted, you may assert at trial the affirmative defense that your use of deadly force was justified and that you should be found not guilty due to that justification.

The problem with that rule is that an affirmative defense generally requires the defense to prove something--in this case, proving the reasonable belief existed.

The basic premise of the American trial system that the District Attorney must prove the entire case and no burden is place upon the defendant is somewhat stripped from the defendant regarding affirmative defenses because the burden is shifted to the defendant.

While you do have this defense of justification available for you, some Pennsylvanian's believe that the burden should not shift to the defendant in certain situation. House Bill 40 of the 2009 Session, if passed into law would create a presumption, that if you legally own or possess a gun, within your home, and your house is being unlawfully or forcibly entered, you would be presumed to have a reasonable belief that deadly force is immediately necessary to protect yourself against death, serious bodily injury, kidnapping or sexual intercourse compelled by force.

This is a basic summary of this addition in the new bill, there are many exceptions to the above. However, this shows the intent of legislature to eliminate the burden shifting to the defendant when the defendant is being attacked in their own home.

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Mistake of Age

Can mistake of age be a defense in a statutory rape case?

In Pennsylvania, the crime of statutory rape is called statutory sexual assault, and the code section can be found at Title 18 Section 3122.1. If the complainant is over the age of thirteen, then mistake of age is a permitted defense. If the complainant is younger than that, then there is no mistake of age defense.

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What is an appeal under the Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA)?

What is an appeal under the Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA)?

The Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA) allows a defendant to appeal his case when a direct appeal to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania has been denied. The PCRA must be filed within a year of the final disposition of the case that ended all of the defendant's appellate rights. The exception to this rule is when the defendant is in custody. When a defendant is in custody, there are various ways to file a PCRA after the one year rule has passed. We have previously answered questions about the Innocence Project. Obviously, all appellate rights and PCRA have expired in most Innocence Project cases, yet, defendants are still allowed to file a PCRA and obtain a hearing. Newly found evidence is an exception to the one year rule.

A PCRA is limited to certain grounds for appeal. You must plead one of the following in the PCRA petition, under the statute, 42 Pa.C.S. 1500-1510:

"(2) That the conviction or sentence resulted from one or more of the following:

(i) A violation of the Constitution of this Commonwealth or the Constitution or laws of the United States which, in the circumstances of the particular case, so undermined the truth-determining process that no reliable adjudication of guilt or innocence could have taken place.

(ii) Ineffective assistance of counsel which, in the circumstances of the particular case, so undermined the truth-determining process that no reliable adjudication of guilt or innocence could have taken place.

(iii) A plea of guilty unlawfully induced where the circumstances make it likely that the inducement caused the petitioner to plead guilty and the petitioner is innocent.

(iv) The improper obstruction by government officials of the petitioners right of appeal where a meritorious appealable issue existed and was properly preserved in the trial court."

(v) Deleted by statute.

(vi) The unavailability at the time of trial of exculpatory evidence that has subsequently become available and would have changed the outcome of the trial if it had been introduced.

(vii) The imposition of a sentence greater than the lawful maximum.

(viii) A proceeding in a tribunal without jurisdiction.

(3) That the allegation of error has not been previously litigated or waived.

(4) That the failure to litigate the issue prior to or during trial or on direct appeal could not have been the result of any rational, strategic or tactical decision by counsel."

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In Absentia Update

My case was done in absentia per the previous November posting. I was found not guilty of all of the major crimes and guilty of some very minor crimes. I was sentenced to 6-18 months in the county, plus I still face some contempt charges. Can I appeal the conviction and/or the sentence?

All of the same Pennsylvania criminal appellate rules apply, but at some point once you file your appeal to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, they will realize that you are on the run and your appeal will be dismissed because of your non-participation in the appeal. I think somewhere between 2-4 months is the absolute maximum of time you have until your appellate rights vanish.

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