Instantly Connect For Your Criminal Defense Consultation When Filling Out Form
Ready to talk to someone about a charge in Allentown? The form above connects you directly, no need to read everything below first.
Your Allentown Criminal Defense Attorney
Few things are as stressful as waiting to learn what a criminal charge will mean. The steadying part is that Pennsylvania law is specific about how charges are graded, how long the Commonwealth has to bring them, and how a record can later be cleared. Keep reading for the time limits, the truth about the 365-day trial rule, straight answers on DUI, drug, assault, and theft charges, and how expungement, Clean Slate, and limited access differ. Talking with an attorney who knows Lehigh County practice can turn these general rules into a plan for your case.
Pennsylvania Criminal Deadlines at a Glance
- 2 years is the default for the Commonwealth to start most prosecutions (42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a)). Some offenses run 5 or 12 years, and murder has no limit.
- Rule 600 sets 365 days from the complaint to the start of trial. Time caused by other things, including defense continuances, is excluded, which is why it is not a simple countdown.
- Custody clock: 180 days. Rule 600(B) limits pretrial incarceration to 180 days from the complaint, and only delay caused by the defense is excluded from that count.
- The grade of a charge decides its maximum penalty: three degrees of felony, three of misdemeanor, and summary offenses at the bottom (18 Pa.C.S. § 106).
- Records: Pennsylvania has three separate routes, expungement, Clean Slate limited access, and limited access by petition, and they are not interchangeable (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 9122 to 9122.2).
Felony, Misdemeanor, or Summary: What the Grade Means
A charge is not just ‘a felony’ or ‘a misdemeanor.’ Pennsylvania divides each into three degrees (18 Pa.C.S. § 106), and summary offenses form a separate, lower class, so the exact grade is worth finding out early.
By degree, a court may impose up to 20, 10, or 7 years for first-, second-, and third-degree felonies (18 Pa.C.S. § 1103), up to 5, 2, or 1 years for first-, second-, and third-degree misdemeanors (§ 1104), and up to 90 days for a summary offense (§ 1105). On fines, Pennsylvania allows up to $25,000 for the top two felony grades and $15,000 for a third-degree felony, then $10,000, $5,000, and $2,500 down the misdemeanor grades and $300 for a summary offense, unless the offense’s own statute says otherwise (18 Pa.C.S. § 1101).
When a statute calls an offense a felony or misdemeanor without naming a degree, it is treated as a third-degree offense, and an offense is summary if the most that can be imposed is 90 days (18 Pa.C.S. § 106).
The Statute of Limitations on a Pennsylvania Criminal Charge
The default limitation period for a criminal case is two years from the offense, under 42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a). It applies unless a more specific provision sets a longer period, which many offenses do, and it covers offenses such as simple assault and DUI.
Two lists extend the default. Five years for offenses such as aggravated assault, burglary, robbery, theft, forgery, and drug offenses punishable under § 13(f) (§ 5552(b)), and twelve years for rape, sexual assault, incest, and sexual abuse of children (§ 5552(b.1)). For murder and voluntary manslaughter there is no deadline (§ 5551).
Under § 5552(e), a case is commenced when an indictment is found, an information is issued, or a warrant, summons, or citation is issued and promptly executed. Section 5554 adds pauses for someone continuously absent from Pennsylvania or without a reasonably ascertainable home or job here, and while a prosecution for the same conduct is pending.
Charged in Allentown? Get matched with an attorney now.
Is There a Hard Deadline to Bring Me to Trial in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania’s speedy trial rule, Rule 600 of the Rules of Criminal Procedure, says trial in a court case must begin within 365 days after the complaint is filed. It is a real right. A violation is raised by a written motion, the judge holds a hearing, and dismissal under the rule is with prejudice, meaning the charges cannot be brought again. Read the rule closely and the 365 days turns out to be adjustable. Delay caused by the Commonwealth without due diligence is counted, and everything else is excluded, including defense continuances, unavailability of the defendant or counsel, and time the defendant has waived.
Courts call the 365-day date the ‘mechanical run date’ and the date after excluded time the ‘adjusted run date.’ Whether a motion succeeds usually turns on the reasons for each continuance, which the judge must record along with who asked for it, and on whether the prosecution can show it acted with due diligence. A crowded court calendar does not automatically save a late trial: the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held in Commonwealth v. Harth (2021) that a trial court may rely on its own scheduling delay only after the Commonwealth has shown it exercised due diligence throughout the case.
If you are held in jail before trial, a separate limit applies. No one may be held more than 180 days from the complaint, excluding only delay caused by the defense, and after that the defense can move for release on nominal bail, unless you are not entitled to bail in your case (Rule 600(B) and (D)(2)). Philadelphia Municipal Court cases run on a different 180-day clock under Rule 1013, but that court sits only in Philadelphia.
How a Criminal Case Moves Through the Courts Near Allentown
Early steps happen before a magisterial district judge: arraignment, bail, summary offenses, and the preliminary hearing (42 Pa.C.S. § 1515). If the charges go forward, the Court of Common Pleas is where the case is tried.
The trial court for Allentown is the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County, part of the Thirty-first Judicial District (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 901, 951), and the county seat is Allentown. Under Pa.R.Crim.P. 130, a case is generally brought before the magisterial district where the offense is alleged to have taken place.
Questions People Ask About DUI, Drug, Assault, and Theft Charges
How does Pennsylvania treat a first DUI charge?
A DUI charge is graded by tier and by prior offenses. Driving with a level of 0.08 to under 0.10, or while unable to drive safely, is general impairment; 0.10 to under 0.16 is high rate; 0.16 or more is highest rate (75 Pa.C.S. § 3802). A first general-impairment offense carries at least six months of probation and a $300 fine, a first high-rate offense at least 48 hours in jail and $500 to $5,000, and a first highest-rate offense at least 72 hours and $1,000 to $5,000 (§ 3804).
Different limits apply to some drivers. A minor can be charged at 0.02, and commercial drivers face 0.04 (0.02 for a school bus or school vehicle) under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3802(e) and (f), so the standard in the tiers above is not the only one.
Is possession with intent to deliver a felony?
Yes. Manufacturing, delivering, or possessing with intent to deliver a controlled substance is a felony under 35 P.S. § 780-113, and the maximum depends on the substance and amount, up to 15 years and $250,000 for a Schedule I or II narcotic. Simple possession, by comparison, is a misdemeanor of up to one year and $5,000, and a small amount of marijuana (30 grams or 8 grams of hashish) up to 30 days and $500.
A drug offense can also lead to a DUI-type charge: driving with any amount of a Schedule I substance, or a non-prescribed Schedule II or III substance, in the blood can be charged under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3802(d)(1), separately from the drug charge itself.
How serious is an assault charge in Pennsylvania?
Assault is graded by how serious the alleged conduct is. Simple assault is a second-degree misdemeanor unless it was a mutual fight (third degree) or committed by an adult against a child under 12 (first degree) (18 Pa.C.S. § 2701). Aggravated assault is a felony: first degree under subsections (a)(1), (2), and (9) and second degree under the other subsections (§ 2702(b)), with maximums of 20 and 10 years.
An assault charge also sets the calendar: with a two-year default for simple assault and five years for aggravated assault (42 Pa.C.S. § 5552), the date of the incident and the date the complaint or warrant issued can matter.
Does the value of the item matter in a theft case?
Yes, the value sets the grade. Under 18 Pa.C.S. § 3903, over $2,000 is a third-degree felony, $200 to $2,000 is generally a first-degree misdemeanor, $50 to under $200 a second-degree misdemeanor, and under $50 a third-degree misdemeanor, with higher felony grades for larger amounts and different rules when property was taken from a person. Retail theft has its own scale in § 3929.
A theft charge turns on proving value and the taking, so how the property was valued, at market value at the time and place of the offense or replacement cost, can change the grade (18 Pa.C.S. § 3903(c)).
Questions about trial timing in Allentown? Get matched with an attorney.
Can I Get This Expunged? Three Different Ways to Clear a Record
‘Will this stay on my record?’ has three different answers in Pennsylvania, because expungement, Clean Slate limited access, and petition-based limited access are separate tools with separate rules. Mixing them up leads to the wrong expectations, so it helps to take them one at a time.
Expungement erases the record, but few convictions qualify. Under 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122 it reaches non-convictions, acquittals on all charges (automatically), and ARD completions (Pa.R.Crim.P. 320), plus two conviction paths: a summary offense after five years without arrest or prosecution, and age 70 with ten arrest-free years after release from confinement or supervision.
Automatic limited access under 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.2 works on a schedule: five years after judgment for a summary conviction, seven years conviction-free (for offenses punishable by a year or more) for misdemeanors of the second or third degree and misdemeanors punishable by two years or less, and ten years for a qualifying drug offense. Restitution and the fee must be paid, and non-conviction records are covered.
Limited access by petition (§ 9122.1) covers people who are not reached automatically. A qualifying misdemeanor can be petitioned for after seven years without a new conviction, and a listed lower-level felony, such as certain theft, forgery, criminal mischief, or criminal trespass offenses, after ten years. First- and second-degree felonies are excluded, restitution and a fee are required, and the district attorney can object.
Eligibility has limits beyond time. For most routes, offenses against the person, offenses against the family, firearms offenses, offenses requiring sex-offender registration, and corruption of minors are excluded (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 9122.1, 9122.3), and a history of other convictions can disqualify someone.
One warning: limited access is a restriction on who sees the record, not a deletion. State Police and court dissemination to most employers and the public stops (18 Pa.C.S. § 9121), but criminal justice agencies, child-welfare agencies, custody and protection-from-abuse cases, and employers under federal screening rules can still get it. Similarly, an expungement, including one that follows a diversion or probation program, still leaves a list of names kept by the prosecutor and State Police, used only for later eligibility, criminal investigations, and the grading of later offenses (§ 9122(c)).
Local Court Details for Allentown
Allentown cases are heard in Lehigh County. Knowing which court you will be in, and how it schedules cases, matters because the Rule 600 count depends on the reasons for each delay, and an attorney who handles Lehigh County matters can watch those dates for you.
For an injury claim rather than a criminal charge, see our Allentown personal injury page.
Also serving: our Bethlehem page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the time limit to prosecute a crime in Pennsylvania?
Two years is the general rule under 42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a). Five-year and twelve-year lists extend it for specific offenses, and a few offenses have no time limit (§ 5551). A prosecution counts as begun when a warrant, summons, or citation is issued and served without unreasonable delay.
Does Rule 600 mean my case is dismissed after 365 days?
Not automatically. Rule 600 sets 365 days from the complaint, but only delay caused by the Commonwealth’s failure to use due diligence counts. Other delay, such as defense continuances, is excluded. Dismissal, with prejudice, requires a written motion and a hearing (Pa.R.Crim.P. 600).
What is the difference between a misdemeanor and a felony in Pennsylvania?
The grade sets the ceiling. Felonies carry up to 20, 10, or 7 years by degree, misdemeanors up to 5, 2, or 1 years, and summary offenses up to 90 days (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 1103, 1104, 1105). Fines follow the same ladder under § 1101.
How serious is a summary offense compared to a misdemeanor?
Well below. A summary offense allows up to 90 days and a $300 fine, while a third-degree misdemeanor allows up to a year and $2,500 (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 1101, 1104, 1105).
Do I have to go to court in Allentown for a criminal charge?
Yes, in the magisterial district where the offense is alleged to have occurred (Pa.R.Crim.P. 130), and, if the case goes forward, in the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County. An attorney can tell you which appearances are required.
Can I get out on bail if my trial is delayed?
Possibly. After 180 days in custody the defense can ask to be released on nominal bail, with any nonmonetary conditions, unless the case is one where the law does not allow bail (Rule 600(B) and (D)(2)).
Does a first DUI in Pennsylvania mean jail time?
It depends on the tier. General impairment (unable to drive safely, or 0.08 to under 0.10) brings at least six months of probation and a $300 fine for a first offense, while high rate (0.10 to under 0.16) means at least 48 hours in jail and highest rate (0.16 and above) at least 72 hours (75 Pa.C.S. § 3804).
What happens to my arrest record after ARD?
After successful completion and dismissal, the judge also orders the arrest record expunged, unless the Commonwealth files an objection within 30 days after the dismissal motion is served (Pa.R.Crim.P. 320). The prosecutor and the State Police still keep a list of names, used only for later program eligibility, identifying people in criminal investigations, and grading later offenses (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122(c)).
What can be expunged from a Pennsylvania criminal record?
Non-conviction charges (by court order), an acquittal on all charges from the same conduct (automatic after a court notice and a 60-day window for the Commonwealth to object), cases dismissed after ARD, a summary conviction after five arrest-free years, and a record at age 70 after ten arrest-free years (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122; Pa.R.Crim.P. 320). Other convictions may qualify for limited access instead.
Is a limited access record the same as an expunged record?
No. Expungement removes the record, while limited access hides it from most requesters but leaves it in place and visible to criminal justice agencies (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 9121, 9122). After some expungements, a list of names is still kept under § 9122(c).
Take the Next Step in Your Allentown Case
You do not have to work out the dates and rules alone. Fill out the form, and you will be connected with an attorney who can review your charge, the timeline, and what a record may look like afterward.
