Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 16, April 20, 2024
Rule 560 - Information: Filing, Contents, Function(A) After the defendant has been held for court following a preliminary hearing or an indictment, the attorney for the Commonwealth shall proceed by preparing an information and filing it with the court of common pleas.(B) The information shall be signed by the attorney for the Commonwealth and shall be valid and sufficient in law if it contains:(1) a caption showing that the prosecution is carried on in the name of and by the authority of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania;(2) the name of the defendant, or if the defendant is unknown, a description of the defendant as nearly as may be;(3) the date when the offense is alleged to have been committed if the precise date is known, and the day of the week if it is an essential element of the offense charged, provided that if the precise date is not known or if the offense is a continuing one, an allegation that it was committed on or about any date within the period fixed by the statute of limitations shall be sufficient;(4) The county where the offense is alleged to have been committed;(5) a plain and concise statement of the essential elements of the offense substantially the same as or cognate to the offense alleged in the complaint;(6) a concluding statement that "all of which is against the Act of Assembly and the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth"; and(7) a certification that the information complies with the provisions of the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania regarding confidential information and documents.(C) The information shall contain the official or customary citation of the statute and section thereof, or other provision of law that the defendant is alleged therein to have violated; but the omission of or error in such citation shall not affect the validity or sufficiency of the information.(D) In all court cases tried on an information, the issues at trial shall be defined by such information.The provisions of this Rule 560 amended April 23, 2004, effective immediately, 34 Pa.B. 2543; amended August 24, 2004, effective 8/1/2005, 34 Pa.B. 5016; amended March 9, 2006, effective 9/1/2006, 36 Pa.B. 1385; amended June 21, 2012, effective in 180 days, 42 Pa.B. 4140; amended January 5, 2018, effective 1/6/2018, 48 Pa.B. 487; amended June 1, 2018, effective 7/1/2018, 48 Pa.B. 3575.