¶1 AND NOW, this 13 th day of February, 2019, the Petition for Allowance of Appeal is GRANTED. The issue, rephrased for clarity is:
Can the tension between the well-settled rule that the Commonwealth bears the burden of demonstrating harmless error beyond a reasonable doubt and the contradictory principle that an appellate court has the ability to affirm a valid judgment or verdict for any reason appearing as of record be reconciled? If these conflicting principles must be reconciled in favor of the Commonwealth proving harmlessness beyond a reasonable doubt, did the Superior Court err in finding harmless error sua sponte ?