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COMMONWEALTH of Pennsylvania, Respondent v. James T. BYRD, a/k/a Al-Tariq Sharif Ali Byrd, Petitioner

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania2018-09-19No. No. 179 WAL 2018
194 A.3d 561

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Opinion

majority opinion

PER CURIAM.

AND NOW, this 19th day of September, 2018, the Petition for Allowance of Appeal is GRANTED. The issue, rephrased for clarity, is:

i. Where an inmate defendant seeks to suppress recordings of his jail visit communications in a criminal proceeding, must the Commonwealth demonstrate that the inmate had actual knowledge that he was being recorded to satisfy the prior consent requirement of the two-party consent exception to the Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act (Wiretap Act), 18 Pa.C.S. § 5704(4)?

ii. If actual knowledge is required by the statute, did the Superior Court err in concluding that Byrd had actual knowledge that he was being recorded?