## Facts

- Robert N. Sitler was charged with multiple vehicular and criminal offenses arising from a fatal traffic collision on November 12, 2012, in Lower Pottsgrove Township, Montgomery County.
- A driver (Regina Qawasmy) reported that Sitler’s pickup truck followed extremely closely (“tailgating”), continued despite her braking, and accelerated to pass as she turned right.
- As Sitler’s truck passed, it struck a 16-year-old boy standing in the center lane, causing fatal injuries; the victim died later that night after emergency response and transport.
- After the collision, Sitler’s girlfriend initially claimed she had been driving the truck.
- Before trial, Sitler moved in limine to exclude: (1) evidence of a prior vehicular criminal conviction involving another fatal crash, (2) evidence that he consumed alcohol before the 2012 collision, and (3) evidence of certain crimen falsi offenses connected to charges he proposed to resolve by guilty plea.
- The trial court granted the motions; the Commonwealth took an interlocutory appeal, asserting the rulings substantially handicapped the prosecution.

## Issues

1. Whether evidence of Sitler’s prior, similar fatal-crash conviction was admissible as other-acts evidence for non-propensity purposes under Pennsylvania Rules of Evidence 404(b) and 403.
2. Whether the trial court erred by categorically excluding evidence that Sitler consumed alcohol before the collision.
3. Whether the trial court could categorically preclude the use of crimen falsi convictions for impeachment if Sitler testified, given anticipated guilty pleas to related charges.

## Decision

- The Superior Court (en banc) affirmed in part, reversed in part, vacated in part, and remanded for trial.
- The court reversed the blanket exclusion of the prior vehicular conviction, holding that at least some form of that evidence could be admitted for permissible purposes (e.g., knowledge, intent, absence of mistake), subject to Rule 403 balancing and limiting instructions.
- The court reversed the blanket exclusion of alcohol-consumption evidence, holding admissibility required a record-based relevance and prejudice analysis of the specific proffer.
- The court affirmed the trial court’s authority to manage proceedings to reduce unfair prejudice from separate guilty pleas, but vacated to the extent the court preemptively barred potential crimen falsi impeachment if Sitler later testified.

## Legal Principles

- Other-acts evidence is inadmissible to prove character or propensity, but may be admissible for non-propensity purposes such as intent, knowledge, and absence of mistake or accident, if relevant and not unfairly prejudicial.
- Strong factual similarity between a prior incident and charged conduct increases probative value on mental-state questions (including awareness of risk) and may justify admission under Rule 404(b), subject to Rule 403 balancing.
- Unfair-prejudice concerns with other-acts evidence can be addressed through careful limitation of the proffer and appropriate limiting instructions.
- Evidence of alcohol consumption in a vehicular-fatality prosecution is not automatically excluded; admissibility turns on whether the evidence is tied to a fact of consequence (such as impairment or recklessness) and whether probative value outweighs unfair prejudice.
- A trial court generally should not issue a categorical, advance ruling permanently foreclosing crimen falsi impeachment; if the defendant testifies, admissibility must be decided under the governing impeachment rules and balancing principles based on the circumstances at trial.

## Conclusion

The en banc court held that the trial court’s broad pretrial exclusions improperly prevented the Commonwealth from presenting potentially admissible evidence bearing on Sitler’s mental state and credibility; it required case-specific evidentiary rulings under Rules 401, 403, and 404(b), and remanded for trial with guidance on limiting instructions and impeachment determinations if Sitler testified.


Commonwealth v. Sitler, 144 A.3d 156 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2016)