Commonwealth v. Pal

NEALON, J.,

Defendant, who has been charged with murder in the first degree and is facing a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, has filed a motion for bail pursuant to Article I, §14 of the Pennsylvania Constitution. Defendant contends that the magisterial district judge’s preliminary hearing finding of a prima facie case of murder in the first degree does not render defendant ineligible for bail, and further argues that the trial judge must conduct a bail hearing and independently conclude that there is “clear and convincing evidence” of defendant’s guilt of an offense punishable by life…