Rule 595 Mandatory Status Conference
Chapter 5: Pretrial Procedures in Court Cases
Rule Text
(A) In all cases in which the defendant was under the age of 18 at the time of the commission of the alleged offense and charged with one of the offenses excluded from the definition of ‘‘delinquent act’’ in paragraphs (2)(i), (2)(ii), and (2)(iii) of 42 Pa.C.S. § 6302, the judge shall hold a status conference.
(1) The status conference shall be held no later than 40 days after the arraignment.
(2) The defendant, the defendant’s attorney, and the attorney for the Commonwealth shall be present at the status conference.
(B) At the status conference, the judge shall determine whether the defendant has filed a motion requesting the transfer from criminal proceedings to juvenile proceedings pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 6322, or is requesting additional time to file a motion for transfer, or does not intend to file a motion.
(1) If the defendant is requesting additional time to file the motion for transfer and the judge agrees to the request, the judge shall set the date by which the motion for transfer shall be filed.
(2) When the defendant has filed a motion, the judge shall determine whether the motion for transfer is ready to be heard and the case shall proceed as provided in Rule 597.
(3) If the defendant is not going to file a motion for transfer or the judge denies the defendant’s request for additional time to file a motion, the case shall continue to proceed as a court case under the Rules of Criminal Procedure.
(4) The judge must place on the record the agreements or objections made by the parties and rulings made by the judge as to any of the matters considered in the status conference. Such order controls the subsequent proceedings unless modified at the hearing on the transfer motion to prevent injustice.
Nothing in this rule gives the defendant’s parents, guardian, or other custodian legal standing in the matter being heard by the court or creates a right of a defendant to have his or her parents, guardian, or other custodian present.
As used in this rule, ‘‘judge’’ means judge of the court of common pleas.