§ 303a.4. Prior record score.
(a) General provisions.
(1) The PRS is a measure of a person’s criminal history, reflecting the number and seriousness of certain previous juvenile adjudications and adult convictions. The PRS addresses the greater culpability and risk to reoffend of repeat offenders. There are five PRS categories (PRS 0—PRS 4).
(2) The PRS is determined by identifying the most serious offense for which a person was adjudicated or convicted prior to the commission of the current offense, and then considering the number of previous adjudications or convictions of equal seriousness.
(3) POGs, as provided in § 303a.13(a) (relating to POG/PRS tables), distinguish the seriousness of previous adjudications and convictions as described below.
(i) POG1 includes all misdemeanors, unless designated as serious crimes.
(ii) POG2 includes all felonies of the third degree and all unclassified felonies, unless designated as serious crimes.
(iii) POG3 includes all serious crimes, defined as:
(A) All felonies of the first and second degree, unless designated as crimes of violence.
(B) All felonies of the third degree and misdemeanors of the first degree if:
(I) 18 Pa.C.S. Article B Chapters 25—32.
(II) 18 Pa.C.S. Chapter 61-A (relating to Uniform Firearms Act of 1995).
(III) 42 Pa.C.S. § 9799.14 (relating to sexual offenses)
(iv) POG4 includes all crimes of violence (42 Pa.C.S. § 9714(g)) (relating to sentences for second and subsequent offenses).
(4) Certain previous adjudication and conviction offenses may be removed from consideration in the prior offense groups following prescribed periods of decay or gap, as described in paragraph (c).
(b) Procedure for identifying previous offenses.
(1) Identify prior offenses for which the person was adjudicated delinquent or convicted prior to the date of the current offense. The prosecution has the burden of proof in determining previous adjudications and convictions based on a preponderance of the evidence.
(2) Juvenile adjudications—consider only the most serious offense for which the person was adjudicated delinquent from each prior juvenile disposition hearing that meets the following criteria:
(i) the juvenile offense occurred on or after the person’s 14th birthday but prior to the person’s 16th birthday and there was an express finding by the juvenile court that the adjudication was for a POG4 offense; or
(ii) the juvenile offense occurred on or after the person’s 16th birthday and there was an express finding by the juvenile court that the adjudication was for a POG2, POG3 or POG4 offense.
(3) Adult convictions (including juvenile transfers)—consider every offense for which the person was convicted.
(4) Excluded prior offenses.
(i) Exclude prior adjudications or convictions for offenses that contribute to an increase in the grade or maximum penalty of a subsequent adjudication or conviction.
(ii) Prior DUI convictions shall not be considered in determining the PRS for any DUI sentence recommendation.
(iii) Exclude lapsed previous adjudication and conviction offenses as set forth in paragraph (c).
(5) Determine the seriousness of previous adjudications and convictions based on the prior offense groups (POG).
(c) Lapsing of previous offenses.
(1) Exclude prior adjudications or convictions for offenses as set forth below.
(2) Juvenile adjudications:
(i) At 25 years of age, remove prior adjudications (decay) for POG2 offenses.
(ii) Following completion of a 10-year crime-free period since the last adjudication or conviction (gap):
(A) remove prior adjudications for POG3 offenses.
(B) remove prior adjudications for POG4 offenses by persons 14 years of age or older but less than 16 years of age at the time of the juvenile offense.
(iii) Following completion of a 15-year crime-free period since the last adjudication or conviction (gap), remove prior adjudications for POG4 offenses by persons 16 years of age or older at the time of the juvenile offense.
(3) Adult convictions:
(i) Following completion of 10 years since the conviction date of the offense (decay), remove prior convictions for POG1 offenses.
(ii) Following completion of a 15-year crime-free period since release from confinement (gap), remove prior convictions for POG2 and POG3 offenses.
(iii) Following completion of a 25-year crime-free period since release from confinement (gap), remove prior convictions for POG4 offenses.
(d) Procedure for determining the prior record score category.
(1) Based on the offenses identified and excluding those removed through lapsing, select the prior offense group based on the most serious prior adjudication or conviction offense.
(2) Count the number of prior adjudication or conviction offenses contained in that prior offense group.
(3) Determine the PRS category based on the number of previous adjudications and convictions in the prior offense group, as provided in § 303a.13:
(i) PRS 4. The category includes offense-specific sentence recommendations that contain the statutory limit at Level E and higher, with the category defined by two or more previous crimes of violence.
(ii) PRS 3. The category includes offense-specific sentence recommendations of confinement that are generally no more than double the base recommendation, with the category defined by:
(A) One previous crime of violence; or
(B) Two or more previous serious crimes; or
(C) Three or more previous felonies (excluding crimes of violence and serious crimes).
(iii) PRS 2. The category is defined by:
(A) One previous serious offense; or
(B) No more than two previous felonies (excluding crimes of violence and serious crimes); or
(C) Three or more previous misdemeanors (excluding serious crimes).
(iv) PRS 1. The category is defined by:
(A) No more than two previous misdemeanors (excluding serious crimes).
(v) PRS 0. The category includes offense-specific sentence recommendations that serve as the base recommendations, with the category defined by:
(A) No previous adjudications or convictions; or
(B) Previous adjudications or convictions that have lapsed.
(e) Miscellaneous provisions.
(1) Adequacy of prior record score. The court may consider at the time of sentencing prior adjudications or convictions not counted in the calculation of the PRS, including lapsed offenses, and other factors deemed appropriate by the court.
(2) When a previous adjudication or conviction offense was committed over a range of dates, the later date shall be used to determine if the prior offense meets the criteria in paragraph (b)(1) for determining the PRS.
(3) Unless otherwise provided, the classification of a previous adjudication or conviction for an inchoate offense or an offense with classification associated with an associated or underlying offense is used to determine the prior offense group.
(4) When a previous adjudication or conviction offense was misclassified, the classification of the current equivalent Pennsylvania offense is used to determine the prior offense group.
(5) Former Pennsylvania offenses.
(i) For a previous adjudication or conviction offense under a former Pennsylvania law, the classification of the current equivalent Pennsylvania offense is used to determine the prior offense group.
(ii) Incomplete information.
(A) When there is no current equivalent Pennsylvania offense, the classification of the previous adjudication or conviction offense is used to determine the prior offense group.
(B) When the previous adjudication or conviction offense was a felony, but the grade of the felony is unknown, it shall be treated as a felony of the third degree. When the previous adjudication or conviction offense was for a misdemeanor, but the grade of the misdemeanor is unknown, it shall be treated as a misdemeanor of the third degree.
(C) When the classification of the previous adjudication or conviction offense cannot be determined, it shall be treated as a misdemeanor of the third degree.
(D) When the previous adjudication or conviction is for an offense which includes a summary classification, and the classification of the previous adjudication or conviction offense is unknown, it shall not be included in the PRS.
(6) Out-of-State, Federal or foreign offenses.
(i) For a previous adjudication or conviction for an out-of-State, Federal or foreign offense, the classification of the current equivalent Pennsylvania offense is used to determine the prior offense group.
(ii) For a court-martial for a criminal offense under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which is considered a Federal conviction, the classification of the current equivalent Pennsylvania offense is used to determine the prior offense group.
(iii) Non-judicial punishments or administrative actions (e.g., Article 15, Article 134) which are not convictions shall not be included in the PRS.
(iv) When there is no current equivalent Pennsylvania offense, the classification of the previous adjudication or conviction offense, based on the maximum sentence authorized for the out-of-State, Federal or foreign offense, is used to determine the prior offense group.
(7) Excluded offenses, charges, and convictions. The following types of offenses, charges, and convictions shall not be scored in the PRS:
(i) Summary offenses, violations of local ordinances, direct or indirect contempt of court, violation of protection from abuse orders, and dispositions under Pa.R.Crim.P. Rules 234 Pa. Code Chapter 3 (relating to accelerated rehabilitative disposition), section 17 of The Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act (35 P.S. § 780-117) regarding probation without verdict or section 18 of The Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act (35 P.S. § 780-118) regarding disposition in lieu of trial or criminal punishment.
(ii) A charge which is nolle prossed, dismissed, or on which a demurrer is sustained.
Source The provisions of this § 303a.4 corrected November 17, 2023, effective January 1, 2024, 53 Pa.B. 7120. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (416209) to (416213).
Cross References This section cited in 204 Pa. Code § 303a.2 (relating to guideline sentencing standards); 204 Pa. Code § 303a.5 (relating to offense-specific sentence recommendations); and 204 Pa. Code § 303a.13 (relating to POG/PRS tables).
No part of the information on this site may be reproduced for profit or sold for profit.
This material has been drawn directly from the official Pennsylvania Code full text database. Due to the limitations of HTML or differences in display capabilities of different browsers, this version may differ slightly from the official printed version.
