Rule 590 - Pleas and Plea Agreements1. The Court will be available for the purpose of taking guilty or nolo contendere pleas from time to time as designated by the Court Administrator on a day(s) which shall be designated as ''Plea Day'' on the Court Calendar. The day(s) selected shall be at least ten (10) days before the respective trial term.2. At the conclusion of each Plea Day, all cases which have not been resolved shall be called by the Commonwealth in open court in a courtroom to be designated. Once the list of remaining cases is called, the Court will not accept any plea for a case on that criminal list unless said plea is to all charges and without agreement as to sentencing. The Court may waive this prohibition against late plea agreements for good cause as the interests of justice require. In the event the Court does find good cause and agrees to take the negotiated plea, such plea may be taken at that time or the case may be continued by the Court for the plea to be taken at another date as the Court may direct.3. Requests for continuances should normally be made on Plea Day. If, after the conclusion of Plea Day, either party becomes aware of circumstances justifying a continuance, a request should be filed with the Court and all parties in writing prior to close of business on the Wednesday preceding criminal trial week. The motion shall set forth whether the other parties concur with or oppose the relief requested.4.(a)All defendants and all attorneys representing defendants on a respective plea day must attend the call of the criminal list unless: i. the case has previously been resolved through plea or other disposition; orii. a date certain has been scheduled for the entry of a plea; oriii. a motion for a continuance has been previously presented and granted; oriv. the defendant and/or counsel and the District Attorney's Office have agreed that the defendant and/or counsel may be excused from the call of the list.(b) Failure to comply with the requirements of paragraph 4(a) may result in the imposition of sanctions by the Court including the issuance of a bench warrant and revocation of bail bond.5. The Court shall state in open court at the commencement of Plea Day and again in open court after concluding the calling of the criminal trial list that, pursuant to Local Rule 590, Plea Day is the last day during which the Court will accept negotiated pleas of guilty or nolo contendere and, thereafter, a party will be required to go to trial during the following trial term or plead guilty as charged.6. By the close of business on the Thursday preceding the criminal trial term, the District Attorney's Office shall provide a copy of the trial schedule to the Court Administrator and the Clerk of Courts Office. The Clerk shall, thereafter, post the schedule. If the trial list is longer than the number of court days available, the Commonwealth shall prioritize the list taking into account Pennsylvania Rule of Criminal Procedure 600. Any cases which have not been set for a specific trial date shall remain on a standby list and may proceed to trial in the event a trial date becomes available. At the conclusion of jury selection for all cases scheduled during a trial term, any remaining cases which cannot be heard due to unavailability of trial days shall be continued by the Court to the following trial term for disposition. Such cases, if not resolved prior thereto, shall receive priority in scheduling during the following trial term. The Court, at all times, reserves the right to set the trial schedule.7. If a defendant is represented by counsel and desires to tender a guilty or nolo contendere plea, a Guilty/Nolo Contendere Plea Colloquy substantially in the form set forth in Rule 590.1 shall be completed. The Colloquy shall be executed by the defendant and his counsel and filed with the Clerk of Courts prior to entry of the plea.8. When the parties have arrived at a plea agreement, they shall state on the record in open Court and in the presence of the Defendant, the terms of the agreement. The agreement will be confirmed in writing substantially in the form set forth in Rule 590.2 and presented to the Court prior to the entry of any plea. At a minimum, the written agreement must contain ALL terms of the agreement and must be executed by the Commonwealth, the Defendant and Defendant's counsel, if any. Nothing in this Rule will prevent the Judge from ordering for good cause shown and with the consent of all parties and counsel, that specific conditions in the agreement be placed on the record in camera and the record sealed.Amended effective 10/17/2022; amended effective 5/29/2023; amended effective 7/31/2023; amended effective 12/18/2023.Comment: Orderly scheduling of jury trials and regard for the convenience of jurors shall be important factors in determining the interests of justice under Pa. R. Crim. P. 106. In order that a trial schedule may be prepared and announced in accordance with this Rule, requests for continuance ordinarily should be made no later than immediately after the trial list is announced for that particular term. In those instances where witness unavailability or other unforeseeable need arises requiring a continuance subsequent to the call of the trial list, a request for continuance should be made prior to the close of business on the Wednesday preceding the criminal trial term.
Although motions for continuance will obviously be governed by the state rule, the local rule is intended to express Court policy that a definite trial schedule published in advance of trial will reduce inconvenience to the Court, the parties, witnesses and jurors. Timeliness measured from promulgation of the trial list is an important consideration in the decision to grant or deny a continuance request. It is expected that all counsel will act with reasonable diligence and promptness in determining whether a case is ready for trial and that counsel shall be in a position to make that determination, at the latest, on the Wednesday prior to trial.
It is noted that the Court calendar will generally schedule at least two (2) plea days prior to each criminal trial term. The intent of this rule is that each plea day shall be a separate and distinct day concerning applicability of the time limits of this rule and continuances from one plea day to another to avoid the intent of this rule will generally not be granted by the Court except as the interests of justice otherwise require.