Commonwealth v. Sparks

STEVENS, J.:

¶ 1 Appellant Alfred Columbus Sparks appeals from the judgment of sentence entered upon his conviction for the charge of escape and contends that the sentencing court improperly graded the severity of the offense as a felony of the third degree, rather than as a misdemean- or of the second degree, pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S. § 5121(d). We find that Appellant removed himself from “official detention,” and thus, satisfied the statutory requirements for a felony conviction.

¶2 The relevant facts and procedural history are as follows: Appellant was on state parole from two prior felony…