THE COURTS
[234 PA. CODE CHS. 4 AND 7]
Order Approving the Revision of the Comments to Rules 431 and 706; No. 341 Criminal Procedural Rules; Doc. No. 2
[36 Pa.B. 1396]
Order Per Curiam:
Now, this 9th day of March, 2006, upon the recommendation of the Criminal Procedural Rules Committee; the proposal having been submitted without publication pursuant to Pa.R.J.A. 103(a)(3) in the interests of efficient administration because the proposed changes are perfunctory in nature, and a Final Report to be published with this Order:
It Is Ordered pursuant to Article V, Section 10 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania that the Comments to Rules of Criminal Procedure 431 and 706 are approved in the following form.
This Order shall be processed in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. 103(b), and shall be effective August 1, 2006.
Madame Justice Baldwin did not participate in the decision of this matter.
Annex A
TITLE 234. RULES OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
CHAPTER 4. PROCEDURES IN SUMMARY CASES
PART D. Arrest Procedures in Summary Cases
PART D(1). Arrests With a Warrant Rule 431. Procedure When Defendant Arrested With Warrant.
* * * * *
Comment For the procedure in court cases following arrest with a warrant initiating proceedings, see Rules 516, 517, and 518. See also the Comment to Rule 706 (Fines or Costs) that recognizes the authority of a common pleas court judge to issue a bench warrant for the collection of fines and costs and provides for the execution of the bench warrant as provided in either paragraphs (C)(1)(c) or (C)(1)(d) and (C)(2) of this rule.
* * * * * Official Note: Rule 76 adopted July 12, 1985, effective January 1, 1986; Comment revised September 23, 1985, effective January 1, 1986; January 1, 1986 effective dates extended to July 1, 1986; Comment revised January 31, 1991, effective July 1, 1991; amended August 9, 1994, effective January 1, 1995; amended October 1, 1997, effective October 1, 1998; amended July 2, 1999, effective August 1, 1999; renumbered Rule 431 and amended March 1, 2000, effective April 1, 2001; amended August 7, 2003, effective July 1, 2004; Comment revised April 1, 2005, effective October 1, 2005; amended June 30, 2005, effective August 1, 2006; Comment revised March 9, 2006, effective August 1, 2006.
Committee Explanatory Reports:
* * * * * Final Report explaining the March 9, 2006 Comment revision adding the cross-reference to Rule 706 published with the Court's Order at 36 Pa.B. 1396 (March 25, 2006).
CHAPTER 7. POST-TRIAL PROCEDURES IN COURT CASES
PART A. Sentencing Procedures Rule 706. Fines or Costs.
* * * * *
Comment See generally Commonwealth ex rel. Benedict v. Cliff, 451 Pa. 427, 304 A.2d 158 ([Pa.] 1973).
Under this rule, when a defendant fails to pay the fine and costs, the common pleas court judge may issue a bench warrant for the collection of the fine and costs. When a ''failure to pay'' bench warrant is issued, the bench warrant must be executed by a police officer following the procedures set forth in Rule 431(C)(1)(c) and (C)(2), or, if the defendant is unable to pay, the police officer must proceed as provided in Rule 150 (Bench Warrants).
* * * * * Official Note: Rule 1407 approved July 23, 1973, effective 90 days hence; renumbered Rule 706 and amended March 1, 2000, effective April 1, 2001; Comment revised March 9, 2006, effective August 1, 2006.
Committee Explanatory Reports:
Final Report explaining the March 1, 2000 reorganization and renumbering of the rules published with the Court's Order at 30 Pa.B. [1477] 1478 (March 18, 2000).
Final Report explaining the March 9, 2006 Comment revision concerning fine and cost warrants published with the Court's Order at 36 Pa.B. 1396 (March 25, 2006).
FINAL REPORT1
Revision of the Comments to Pa.Rs.Crim.P.
431 and 706
''Fine and Costs'' Bench Warrants Issued by Judges of the Courts of Common Pleas On March 9, 2006, effective August 1, 2006, upon the recommendation of the Criminal Procedural Rules Committee, the Court approved the revision of the Comments to Rules of Criminal Procedure 431 (Procedure When Defendant Arrested with a Warrant) and 706 (Fine and Costs) clarifying that judges of the Courts of Common Pleas are permitted to issue ''fine and costs'' bench warrants in court cases in the same manner that magisterial district court judges do pursuant to Rule 431.
The proposal evolved from the Committee's review of the arrest warrant forms that were under consideration for inclusion on the Common Pleas Case Management System (CPCMS).2 The AOPC's CPCMS staff asked the Committee whether common pleas court judges are authorized to issue ''fine and cost'' warrants similar to the ''fine and cost'' warrants issued by magisterial district court judges pursuant to Rule 431.
Rule 431(C) provides, inter alia, that
(C) Bench Warrants(1) When a bench warrant is executed, the police officer shall either:* * * * * (c) accept from the defendant the amount of restitution, fine, and costs due as specified in the warrant if the warrant is for collection of restitution, fine, and costs after a guilty plea or conviction; or(d) if the defendant is unable to pay, promptly take the defendant for a hearing on the bench warrant as provided in paragraph (C)(3).(2) When the defendant pays the restitution, fines, and costs, or collateral pursuant to paragraph (C)(1), the police officer shall issue a receipt to the defendant setting forth the amount of restitution, fine, and costs received and return a copy of the receipt, signed by the defendant and the police officer, to the proper issuing authority.Although there is no comparable rule in the rules governing court cases, the Committee noted that Rule 706, which provides the procedures in a court case for handling failures to pay fines and costs, is comparable to Rule 456 (Default Procedures: Restitution, Fines, and Costs) governing the procedures in summary cases for handling failures to pay fines and costs. In view of this, and because the Committee was unable to find any Committee rule history to the contrary,3 the Committee reasoned that there is nothing in the rules precluding Common Pleas Court Judges when issuing warrants for failure to pay fines and costs to authorize the police officer executing the warrant to accept the fines and costs in lieu of taking the defendant into custody. The Committee also agreed, because of the questions from the CPCMS staff, a provision in the rules making this clear would be beneficial to the members of the bench and bar.
The Committee discussed whether a separate rule that would be comparable to Rule 431 should be added to the court case rules. We decided, because the warrant forms will be available on the CPCMS and the procedures for execution of fine and cost warrants are enumerated in Rule 431, that a Comment provision alerting the Common Pleas Court Judges to this procedure would be sufficient.
Accordingly, the Rule 706 Comment has been revised by the addition of a cross-reference to Rule 431. Because Rule 431 is an ''execution of warrant'' rule, the Rule 706 Comment language first notes that common pleas court judges may issue a ''failure to pay warrant.'' The remainder of the Comment provision explains that the ''failure to pay warrant'' must be executed by a police officer following the provisions in Rule 431(C)(1)(c) and (C)(2). If the defendant is unable to pay at the time of the execution of the warrant, the police officer must follow the procedures in Rule 150 (Bench Warrants).
A clarifying paragraph also has been added to the Rule 431 Comment explaining that the application of the Rule 431 procedures in court cases is limited to the procedures in paragraphs (C)(1)(c) and (C)(2). The other Rule 431 provisions do not apply in the context of a common pleas court case.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 06-482. Filed for public inspection March 24, 2006, 9:00 a.m.] _______
1 The Committee's Final Reports should not be confused with the official Committee Comments to the rules. Also note that the Supreme Court does not adopt the Committee's Comments or the contents of the Committee's explanatory Final Reports.
2 The Committee, as part of our ongoing work with the AOPC's Common Pleas Case Management System (CPCMS) staff, which includes review of all the forms being incorporated into the system, has been addressing numerous questions, such as these form questions, that are raised by the CPCMS staff.
3 For a discussion about fine and costs warrants in the summary case context, see the Committee's explanatory Report at 13 Pa.B. 2948, 2964, 2965 (10/1/1983).
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