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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 06-1801

THE COURTS

YORK COUNTY

The Adoption of Local Rules of Criminal Procedure 117, 150, 520 and 114 Providing for Coverage and Availability of Issuing Authorities with Respect to Issuing Warrants and Conducting Hearings Thereon; Conducting Preliminary Arraignments and Summary Trials; Setting and Accepting Bail; and Service of Documents; No. CP-67-AD-27-2006

[36 Pa.B. 5780]
[Saturday, September 16, 2006]

Administrative Order Adopting Local Rules of Criminal Procedure 117, 150, 520, and 114

   And Now, this 1st day of September, 2006, pursuant to Rule 105 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, it is hereby ordered that Local Rules of Criminal Procedure 117 (YCCrim-117), 150 (YCCrim-150), 520 (YCCrim-520), and 114 (YCCrim-114) are hereby Adopted to take effect thirty (30) days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

   Any previous local rule or administrative order, or part thereof, which is in conflict with these local rules or this order is hereby repealed or vacated.

   The District Court Administrator is ordered and directed to:

   1.  File seven (7) certified copies of this order with the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts.

   2.  Send two (2) certified copies and a diskette to the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

   3.  Send one (1) certified copy of this order to the Pennsylvania Criminal Procedural Rules Committee.

   4.  Forward one (1) copy to the York County Law Library.

   5.  Keep continuously available for public inspection copies of this order and rule in the Clerk of Courts Office.

By the Court

RICHARD K. RENN,   
President Judge

York County Rule of Criminal Procedure (YCCrim)-117: Magisterial District Judge Coverage and After Hours Coverage For Judicial Business

A.  Regular Business Hours of Magisterial District Judges:

   1.  The offices of the Magisterial District Judges shall be open for at least a total of 30 hours per week, Monday through Friday, excluding any court holidays and a reasonable time for lunch.

   2.  Offices of the Magisterial District Judges shall be open at least four days per week, excluding any court holidays and a reasonable time for lunch, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

   3.  Magisterial District Judges shall submit their proposed yearly schedule of office hours to the President Judge for approval prior to December 1 of the preceding year, unless there are no changes from the preceding year, and shall post the schedule at least annually in a conspicuous place at the office, pursuant to Rule 103 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Conduct for Magisterial District Justices. Schedules of office hours of all Magisterial District Judges shall also be maintained in the office of the District Court Administrator.

   4.  Applications for a change in office hours shall be made to the President Judge, through the District Court Administrator, prior to any change being instituted.

B.  Availability of Magisterial District Judges During Regular Business Hours:

   1.  Magisterial District Judges shall be available to conduct judicial business during regular business hours, without unnecessary delay.

   2.  Should a Magisterial District Judge for a particular district not be available during regular business hours, any matter requiring immediate judicial attention shall be referred to the nearest available Magisterial District Judge.

   3.  A Magisterial District Judge may designate the personnel in that office to make a referral and designate the manner of referring matters to the nearest available Magisterial District Judge.

   4.  A Magisterial District Judge shall inform the District Court Administrator, and York County E-911, as soon as reasonably practical, of that Magisterial District Judge's scheduled or unscheduled unavailability during regular business hours.

C.  Availability of Magisterial District Judges After Regular Business Hours:

   1.  A Magisterial District Judge, known as the ''Duty MDJ'' shall be on continuous duty after regular business hours for the purpose of conducting judicial business requiring immediate attention, without unnecessary delay.

   (a)  The District Court Administrator shall designate and publish the annual schedule of Duty MDJs prior to November 1 of the preceding year.

   (b)  A Duty MDJ who is scheduled for a particular time may exchange duty times with another Magisterial District Judge, and shall make such change known to the District Court Administrator and York County E-911 as soon as is reasonably practical.

   2.  An office, known as a ''Duty Office'' shall be maintained for the Duty MDJ to conduct judicial business after regular business hours.

   (a)  Such office may be at a ''central booking'' facility, or another office suitable for the conduct of judicial business after hours.

   (b)  Such office shall be equipped with suitable electronic communications to enable simultaneous visual and audio communication with the York County Prison and a Duty MDJ.

   3.  The Duty MDJ shall be available at all times when assigned after regular business hours to conduct judicial business without unnecessary delay.

   (a)  Such judicial business, including preliminary arraignments, setting of bail, and processing individuals arrested or otherwise detained, may be conducted by suitable electronic communications which provides simultaneous audio and visual contact between the Duty MDJ and the Duty Office.

   (b)  In the event such business is conducted remotely by electronic communications, suitable electronic methods of transmitting required paperwork without unnecessary delay may be utilized, including computer or facsimile transmittal.

York County Rule of Criminal Procedure (YCCrim)- 150: Hearings on Bench Warrants

A.  Bench Warrants to be Heard by Judge Issuing Warrant:

   Hearings for individuals arrested on bench warrants shall be heard by the judicial officer who issued the bench warrant, within the time periods and pursuant to the procedures set forth in Pa.R.Crim.P. 150.

B.  Bench Warrants Issued by Judge of Court of Common Pleas:

   1.  Hearings for individuals arrested on bench warrants issued by a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas shall be heard by the Judge who issued the bench warrant.

   2.  In the event that an individual has been arrested on more than one bench warrant issued by different Judges of the Court of Common Pleas, the individual may be taken before any Judge who issued a warrant, who shall conduct a hearing on all of the bench warrants pursuant to which the individual was arrested.

   3.  In the event that the Judge or Judges who issued a bench warrant are unavailable to conduct a hearing within the time limits set forth in Pa.R Crim.P. 150, then the hearing shall be conducted by the designated ''Duty Judge.''

   a.  The District Court Administrator shall maintain a list of ''Duty Judges'' which shall be updated from time to time and circulated among the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas of York County. The District Court Administrator shall assign such hearings to the appropriate Judge from that list if the issuing Judge is not available.

   b.  A Judge who is ''on duty'' for the designated time period shall insure his or her availability or the availability of another Common Pleas Judge, during normal Court business hours, for the purpose of conducting these hearings and for addressing other matters which may need the attention of the Court and for which the Judge ordinarily assigned to a matter may not be available.

   4.  At the conclusion of the bench warrant hearing following the disposition of the matter, the Judge shall immediately vacate the bench warrant, using an ORDER which shall be substantially in the form as prescribed by the President Judge or designee.

C.  Bench Warrants Issued by Magisterial District Judges:

   1.  Hearings for individuals arrested on bench warrants issued by a Magisterial District Judge shall be heard by the Magisterial District Judge who issued the bench warrant.

   2.  In the event that an individual has been arrested on more than one bench warrant issued by different Magisterial District Judges, the individual may be taken before any Magisterial District Judge who issued a warrant, who may conduct a hearing on all of the bench warrants pursuant to which the individual was arrested.

   3.  In the event that the Magisterial District Judge or Judges who issued a bench warrant are unavailable to conduct a hearing within the time limits set forth in Pa.R Crim.P. 150, or if an individual is arrested after normal business hours on a bench warrant, then the matter or matters shall proceed pursuant to YCCrim-117.

D.  Release of Individual Not Applicable to Warrants Issued in Parole/Probation Proceedings:

   An individual arrested as a result of a bench warrant issued in connection with a parole or probation proceeding shall not be released upon the expiration of seventy-two (72) hours without further court order, regardless of whether that individual had a hearing on the bench warrant.

York County Rule of Criminal Procedure (YCCrim)-520: Posting of Bail:

A.  Posting of Bail During Normal Business Hours:

   1.  Bail in any acceptable form may be posted during normal business hours at the office of the Clerk of Courts and shall be accepted by the Clerk of Courts or the Clerk's designees.

   2.  Bail in any acceptable form, except real property, may be posted during normal business hours at the office of the issuing authority.

B.  Posting of Bail After Normal Business Hours:

   1.  Bail in any acceptable form, except real property, may be posted after normal business hours with the Duty MDJ, at such location as the Duty MDJ may designate. The Duty MDJ may make such arrangements for security of the facility, staff and the Duty MDJ as is reasonably necessary to facilitate the acceptance of bail.

   2.  Bail in any acceptable form, except real property and currency, may be posted after normal business hours with the Duty MDJ at the Duty Office, or at the York County Prison.

   (a)  The Warden of the York County Prison, or the Warden's designees, are authorized to do all things necessary to accept bail at the York County Prison after normal business hours.

   (b)  The Sheriff of York County, or the Sheriff's designees, are authorized to do all things necessary to accept bail at the Duty Office.

York County Rule of Criminal Procedure (YCCrim)- 114: Service of Court Orders or Court Notices

A.  Documents Required to be Served by Clerk of Courts:

   1.  The Clerk of Courts shall record the service of all orders, court notices, and any other document required by law or applicable rule of procedure to be served on a party or counsel.

   2.  The service of an order, court notice, or any other document required to be served by the Clerk of Courts shall be recorded on a form prescribed by the District Court Administrator.

   a.  The form shall include, at a minimum, the information required by Pa.R.Crim.P. 114(C), and shall also include the manner of service and the name of the individual recording the information.

   b.  The form shall be filed in the criminal case file maintained by the Clerk of Courts, and docket entries shall be made pursuant to the requirements of Pa.R.Crim.P. 113 and 114.

B.  Documents May be Served by District Court Administrator:

   1.  Any order or court notice produced by stenographic transcription and required to be served on an attorney or an office located within the York County Judicial Center may be served by the District Court Administrator, or the District Court Administrator's designee.

   2.  If service of an order or court notice is made pursuant to Section B1 above, the District Court Administrator, or designee, shall cause to be filed in the Clerk of Court's office, proof of service on the form prescribed in Section A2 above.

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 06-1801. Filed for public inspection September 15, 2006, 9:00 a.m.]

   


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