Rule 900. Scope; Notice In Death Penalty Cases.
(A) The rules in Chapter 9 apply to capital and noncapital cases under the Post Conviction Relief Act, 42 Pa.C.S. § § 9541—9546, as amended by Act 1995-32 (SS1).
(B) Notice in Death Penalty Cases
In all death penalty cases upon the Supreme Court’s affirmance of the judgment of a death sentence, the Prothonotary shall include in the mailing required by Pa.R.A.P. 2521 (Entry of Judgment or Other Order) the following information concerning the Post Conviction Relief Act and the procedures under Chapter 9 of the Rules of Criminal Procedure. ‘‘Parties’’ as used in Pa.R.A.P. 2521 shall include the defendant, the defendant’s counsel, and the attorney for the Commonwealth for the purposes of this rule.
(1) A petition for post-conviction collateral relief must be filed within one year of the date the judgment becomes final, except as otherwise provided by statute.
(2) As provided in 42 Pa.C.S. § 9545(b)(3), a judgment becomes final at the conclusion of direct review, which includes discretionary review in the Supreme Court of the United States and the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, or at the expiration of time for seeking the review.
(3) (a) If the defendant fails to file a petition within the one-year time limit, the action may be barred. See 42 Pa.C.S. § 9545(b).
(b) Any issues that could have been raised in the post-conviction proceeding, but were not, may be waived. See 42 Pa.C.S. § 9544(b).
(4) Pursuant to Rule 904 (Appointment of Counsel; in Forma Pauperis), the trial judge will appoint new counsel for the purpose of post-conviction collateral review, unless:
(a) the defendant has elected to proceed pro se or waive post-conviction collateral proceedings, and the judge finds, after a colloquy on the record, that the defendant is competent and the defendant’s election is knowing, intelligent, and voluntary;
(b) the defendant requests continued representation by original trial counsel or direct appeal counsel, and the judge finds, after a colloquy on the record, that the petitioner’s election constitutes a knowing, intelligent, and voluntary waiver of a claim that counsel was ineffective; or
(c) the judge finds, after a colloquy on the record, that the defendant has engaged counsel who has entered, or will promptly enter, an appearance for the collateral review proceedings.
Comment The 1995 amendments to the Post Conviction Relief Act specifically provide that, ‘‘except as specifically provided otherwise, all provisions of this subchapter shall apply to capital and noncapital cases.’’ See 42 Pa.C.S. § 9542.
See Rule 909 (Procedures for Petitions in Death Penalty Cases: Stays of Execution of Sentence; Hearing; Disposition) concerning requests for, and length of, stays of execution in death penalty cases.
For time limits for filing a petition for post-conviction relief and any exceptions, see 42 Pa.C.S. § 9545(b).
See Rule 904 for the procedures for the appointment of counsel.
Pursuant to paragraph (B), the Supreme Court’s Prothonotary must include with the mailing required by Rule of Appellate Procedure 2521 (Entry of Judgment or Other Order) the information set forth in paragraph (B)(1)—(4). Rule 2521 requires, inter alia, on the date a judgment or order is entered, that the prothonotary is to send to all parties by first class mail a copy of any opinion, or judgment, or order.
Official Note
Rule 1500 adopted August 11, 1997, effective immediately; Comment revised July 23, 1999, effective September 1, 1999; renumbered Rule 900 and amended March 1, 2000, effective April 1, 2001; amended March 26, 2002, effective July 1, 2002; Comment revised October 1, 2019, effective immediately.
Committee Explanatory Reports:
Final Report explaining the August 11, 1997 adoption of Rule 1500 published with the Court’s Order at 27 Pa.B. 4305 (August 23, 1997).
Final Report explaining the July 23, 1999 Comment revision concerning stays published with the Court’s Order at 29 Pa.B. 4167 (August 7, 1999).
Final Report explaining the March 1, 2000 reorganization and renumbering of the rules published with the Court’s Order at 30 Pa.B. 1477 (March 18, 2000).
Final Report explaining the March 26, 2002 amendments providing for notice in death penalty cases published with the Court’s Order at 32 Pa.B. 1841 (April 13, 2002).
Final Report explaining the October 1, 2019 Comment revision concerning time limitation for raising exceptions to filing restrictions published with the Court’s Order at 49 Pa.B. 6066 (October 19, 2019).
Source The provisions of this Rule 900 amended March 26, 2002, effective July 1, 2002, 32 Pa.B. 1840; amended October 1, 2019, effective immediately, 49 Pa.B. 6064. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (315233) to (315234).
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.
