Rule Text
(A) After the jury has been sworn, the attorney for the Commonwealth shall make an opening statement to the jury. The defendant or the defendant’s attorney may then make an opening statement or reserve it until after the Commonwealth has presented its case.
(B) When the evidence is concluded, each party shall be entitled to present one closing argument to the jury. Regardless of the number of defendants, and whether or not a defendant has presented a defense, the attorney for the Commonwealth shall be entitled to make one argument which shall be made last.
Amendment history: The provisions of this Rule 604 amended June 4, 2004, effective November 1, 2004, 34 Pa.B. 3105. Immediately preceeding text appears at serial page (264309).
Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)
This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.
In a jury trial, both sides get to speak directly to the jury at the beginning and end of the case. The prosecution always goes first with an opening statement. The defendant's side can either give their opening statement right after, or wait until after the prosecution has finished presenting its evidence.
Once all the evidence has been shown, both sides get one closing argument each. No matter how many defendants are in the case, the prosecution always gets to give the final closing argument, even if the defense never put on any evidence of their own.
Committee Notes
This rule establishes a uniform procedure throughout the Commonwealth for the guilt determining phase of the trial. For the procedures after the presentation of evidence at the sentencing phase of a death penalty case, see Rule 806.
Rule 1116 adopted January 24, 1968, effective August 1, 1968; Comment revised February 1, 1989, effective July 1, 1989; renumbered Rule 604 and amended March 1, 2000, effective April 1, 2001; Comment revised June 4, 2004, effective November 1, 2004.
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).
