Commonwealth v. Martin

Opinion by

Mr. Justice Roberts,

Appellant raises two issues on these appeals: (1) whether the delay in appellant’s not being brought to trial within the 180 days provided in the Agreement on Detainers, Act of September 8, 1959, P. L. 829, 19 P.S. §1431 et seq., operates automatically to divest the court of jurisdiction over this defendant; and (2) whether plea bargaining is a form of request for continuance for good cause shown. We must also decide whether appellant’s subsequent plea of guilty was voluntary. *

The pertinent factual background is as follows. Appellant was serving a sentence in…