THE COURTS
Title 255—LOCAL
COURT RULES
SCHUYLKILL COUNTY
Criminal Rules of Procedure Rule 310, Motion for ARD Disposition Rule 590.1, Pleas and Plea Agreements; AD 54-2016
[46 Pa.B. 4953]
[Saturday, August 13, 2016]
Order of Court And Now, this 29th day of July, 2016 at 8:55 a.m., Schuylkill County Criminal Rule of Procedure, Rule 310, Motion for ARD Disposition, and Rule 590.1, Pleas and Plea Agreements, are amended for use in the Court of Common Pleas of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, Twenty-First Judicial District, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, effective thirty days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
The Clerk of Courts of Schuylkill County is Ordered and Directed to do the following:
1) File one (1) certified copy of this Order and Rules with the Administrative Office of the Pennsylvania Courts.
2) Forward two (2) certified copies of this Order and Rule and a CD-ROM containing the text of the local rules to the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
3) Forward one (1) copy to the Schuylkill County Law Library for publication in the Schuylkill Legal Record.
4) Copies shall be kept continuously available for public inspection in the Office of the Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts and the Schuylkill County Law Library.
It is further Ordered that said rules as they existed prior to the amendment are hereby repealed and annulled on the effective date of said rule as amended, but no right acquired thereunder shall be disturbed.
By the Court
WILLIAM E. BALDWIN,
President JudgeRule 310. Motion for A.R.D. Disposition.
(a) In all cases in which a defendant charged with violation of 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 3731 (Driving Under the Influence) seeks a special handling by way of A.R.D., the District Attorney shall arrange with (1) the Drug and Alcohol Clinic at the Good Samaritan Hospital for examination and evaluation, and (2) the Adult Probation Department for an investigation of prior criminal history.
Reports prepared by the Drug and Alcohol Clinic and the Adult Probation Department shall be delivered to the District Attorney and shall be subject to inspection by the District Attorney and defense counsel. Such reports shall become part of the defendant's probation department file. All such reports shall be submitted along with the necessary A.R.D. forms to the Criminal Court Administrator.
(b) The A.R.D. motions for defendants who have been recommended by the District Attorney for the Fast Track A.R.D. Program shall be heard on the dates published for Fast Track A.R.D. in the Court Calendar.
Rule 590.1. Pleas and Plea Agreements.
(a) The District Attorney shall prepare the sentencing guideline forms provided by the Court as soon as practicable after the informations are lodged, setting forth the sentences required by the guidelines if a plea of guilty is entered by the defendant, and shall forward this material to defense counsel. Counsel for defendants who wish to engage in plea negotiations shall promptly thereafter schedule a meeting with the District Attorney.
(b) In those cases where no plea agreement has been made, a plea negotiation conference shall be held. At said conference, the District Attorney assigned to the case and prosecuting officer or an officer from his department with authority to resolve the case shall meet with the defendant and defense counsel with the end in view to determine whether they can arrive at a plea agreement. The victim shall be notified and given an opportunity to attend and participate in the negotiations.
(c) If the parties arrive at a plea agreement, the defense counsel or defendant shall complete the form for entry of a written guilty plea available at the office of the District Attorney and promptly return it to that office. The District Attorney shall promptly attach to the written guilty plea a copy of the information against the defendant, a report of the defendant's prior criminal record, and a list of maximum penalties and sentence guidelines for each charge. The District Attorney shall file the written guilty plea with attachments in the office of the Clerk of Courts, who shall promptly forward the guilty plea and attachments to the Criminal Court Administrator. When the charge is D.U.I., a copy of the CRN shall also be provided to the Court.
Each written guilty plea shall be accompanied by a ''Guilty Plea Certification'' completed and signed by the District Attorney and defense counsel, certifying to the Court that the defendant's guilty plea has not previously been presented to the Court, or specifying the date when the plea was presented and identifying the judge who rejected the plea. Counsel who fail to comply with this rule may be held in contempt of Court.
The Criminal Court Administrator shall assign all guilty pleas and motions for A.R.D. among the judges who will hear those cases. Except for a plea of guilty entered after commencement of trial, the Court shall accept no guilty plea or A.R.D. motion unless scheduled and assigned by the Criminal Court Administrator.
(d) All guilty pleas and motions for A.R.D. received by the Criminal Court Administrator shall be heard on one of the dates scheduled for guilty pleas in the published Court Calendar unless otherwise scheduled by the Court.
(1) The pleas of incarcerated defendants and those defendants represented by the Public Defender or who have no counsel shall be heard at 9:30 a.m. on a published plea date.
(2) The pleas of all defendants who are not incarcerated and have retained private counsel shall be heard on the published guilty plea date at 1:30 p.m.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 16-1389. Filed for public inspection August 12, 2016, 9:00 a.m.]
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