Commonwealth v. Bethea

OPINION OF THE COURT

Chief Justice CAPPY.

This appeal concerns the distinction between venue and subject matter jurisdiction. The discrete question presented is whether the Court of Common Pleas of Franklin County had subject matter jurisdiction to hear and decide the case against Rondu Bethea involving violations of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code, (“Crimes Code”) when the underlying criminal episode occurred in Cumberland County. As we find that the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas did have subject matter jurisdiction, the decision of the Superior Court is reversed.

The factual predicate for…