Pennsylvania Superior Court rejects inmate’s claim of impartiality conflict over Operation Our Town

Dawson appeal criticized judicial ties to Operation Our Town

The Pennsylvania Superior Court on Thursday dismissed an appeal by a former Altoona man who questioned the impartiality of the judge and prosecutor in his cases due to their association with Operation Our Town.

Derrick Dewight Dawson, 39, is incarcerated in the State Correctional in Huntingdon after being sentenced in 2012 to a prison term of 33 to 66 years for drug-related offenses.

His lengthy sentence was affirmed by the Superior Court on Oct. 4, 2013, and further appeal was denied by the state Supreme Court on March 25, 2014.

Dawson over the next six years filed three additional appeals, all of which were unsuccessful, according to the opinion authored by Judge John T. Bender.

The subject of the appeal by Dawson on Thursday involved a fourth appeal, filed by Dawson on Jan. 6, 2022, but which was amended by court-appointed counsel.

Blair County Judge David B. Consiglio ruled it was untimely on Jan. 7, 2024.

Dawson in his most recent petition questioned the dismissal of his post conviction petitions.

Post conviction appeals must be filed within a year of the date on which a defendant's case becomes final.

According to the Superior Court opinion, Dawson's case became final in 2014 when the Supreme Court refused further review of his case.

His most recent petition was not filed until 2022, making his appeal "facially untimely."

But, there are exceptions to the time barriers placed on the filing of petitions.

Government interference is one exception.

Another is a ruling by the U.S. or state Supreme Courts that alters the legal landscape.

The third exception is the discovery of new facts that could have altered the outcome of a case.

Dawson in his most recent appeal questioned the impartiality of the prosecutor and the judge who handled his cases because, he contended, they were members of a steering committee that oversaw Operation Our Town, the nonprofit organization that provides funding for law enforcement to conduct investigations of illegal drug operations and for the Blair County District Attorney's Office to prosecute dealers.

Dawson argued that the judge and prosecutor in his cases were biased due to their association with Operation Our Town.

He contended he never realized this involvement until another inmate informed him and that was the reason his post-conviction petitions were untimely.

But, the Superior Court opinion found the new-fact exception was not applicable in Dawson's case because the information about Operation Our Town's association with police and the DA's office has been known and publicized for years.

The appeals court for instance cited a lengthy Jan. 4, 2015, story on the front page of the Altoona Mirror that dealt with the subject and pointed out Dawson's case as an example of the tough sentences being imposed on drug dealers.

The judge who presided over Dawson's trial ( Elizabeth Doyle) "was specifically mentioned in the article," the appeals court noted.

The Superior Court opinion concluded, "Because appellant (Dawson) has not demonstrated that he acted with due diligence, he cannot not meet the newly-discovered-fact exception to the ... one year time-bar," it stated.

The panel that reviewed the Dawson case included Bender and Judges Timika Lane and Maria McLaughlin.