Instantly Connect For Your Criminal Defense Consultation When Filling Out Form
Ready to talk to someone about a charge in Bethlehem? The form above connects you directly, no need to read everything below first.
Your Bethlehem Criminal Defense Attorney
A criminal charge brings a lot at once: a court date, questions about work and family, and no clear picture of what comes next. This page walks through the Pennsylvania rules that most often shape how a case in Bethlehem unfolds. You will find the deadlines first, then the trial-timing rule, the courts, the most common charges, and finally what can be cleared from a record and how. A local attorney who handles Northampton County cases can tell you which of these rules apply to your situation.
The Short Answers: Time Limits, Trial Timing, and Records
- General limit on prosecution: 2 years from the offense (42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a)), extended to 5 or 12 years for specific offenses and removed entirely for murder.
- Speedy trial: 365 days under Rule 600, counted from the complaint, but only delay caused by the Commonwealth’s lack of diligence is counted against it.
- If you are in custody, the limit is 180 days from the complaint (Rule 600(B)). After that a motion for release on nominal bail is available, except where bail is not allowed.
- Grading: charges are felonies (first, second, or third degree), misdemeanors (first, second, or third degree), or summary offenses, and the grade sets the maximum sentence (18 Pa.C.S. § 106).
- Three ways to clear a record: expungement (removal), Clean Slate limited access (automatic), and limited access by petition, each with its own eligibility rules (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.
The ceilings are set by statute. A first-degree felony can bring up to 20 years, a second-degree felony up to 10, and a third-degree felony up to 7 (§ 1103), while misdemeanors are capped at 5, 2, and 1 years (§ 1104) and summary offenses at 90 days (§ 1105). Fines are capped by grade as well: up to $25,000 for a first- or second-degree felony, $15,000 for a third-degree felony, $10,000, $5,000, and $2,500 for first-, second-, and third-degree misdemeanors, and $300 for a summary offense, unless a specific statute sets a different amount (18 Pa.C.S. § 1101).
Two small rules from § 106 are worth knowing: an offense labeled a felony or misdemeanor with no degree is graded third degree, and one carrying no more than 90 days is summary.
The Statute of Limitations on a Pennsylvania Criminal Charge
Start with the general rule: two years from the offense (42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a)). It applies to offenses that no special provision lengthens, including simple assault and DUI, which are not on the five-year list.
Longer periods apply to listed offenses. Five years covers aggravated assault, terroristic threats, arson, burglary, robbery, theft offenses, forgery, and offenses punishable under section 13(f) of the Controlled Substance Act, among others (§ 5552(b)). Twelve years covers rape, sexual assault, incest, and similar offenses (§ 5552(b.1)). Murder and voluntary manslaughter have no limit at all (§ 5551).
Timing is measured to the start of the case, not to trial: an indictment, an information, or a warrant, summons, or citation issued and executed without unreasonable delay (§ 5552(e)). The period does not run during continuous absence from Pennsylvania, when no home or workplace here can reasonably be found, or while a prosecution for the same conduct is pending (§ 5554).
Charged in Bethlehem? Get matched with an attorney now.
Rule 600 Sounds Like a Strict Deadline. Here Is What Actually Decides Whether It Helps
Rule 600 requires a court case to go to trial within 365 days after the complaint is filed. Enforcing it takes a motion by the defense and a hearing, and a dismissal under the rule is with prejudice. That number is not a simple countdown. The rule counts delay against the Commonwealth only when the Commonwealth did not act with due diligence, and it excludes all other delay, such as defense continuances, the defendant’s or attorney’s unavailability, and any time the defendant waives.
In practice the fight is over the adjusted date. The judge is required to record who requested each continuance and whether the time is included or excluded (Rule 600(C)(3)), and the Commonwealth carries the burden of showing due diligence before it can rely on excluded time. Results go both ways. In 2023 the Superior Court reversed a Philadelphia dismissal entered after 624 days because emergency orders had suspended Rule 600 for 521 of them (Commonwealth v. Malone), and in 2024 it upheld a different Philadelphia dismissal because the Commonwealth could not show diligence (Commonwealth v. Graves).
For people in custody, Rule 600(B) sets 180 days. Only defense-caused delay is excluded from it, and if it is exceeded the defense can ask to be released on nominal bail, with the exception of cases where the law does not entitle the defendant to bail.
The Courts Behind a Bethlehem Criminal Charge
In Pennsylvania a criminal case generally begins with a magisterial district judge, who deals with summary offenses, arraignment, bail, and the preliminary hearing (42 Pa.C.S. § 1515), before the case goes on to the Court of Common Pleas.
The trial court for Bethlehem is the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County, part of the Third Judicial District (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 901, 951), and the county seat is Easton. The magisterial district for a case is generally the one where the offense is alleged to have occurred (Pa.R.Crim.P. 130). Bethlehem lies in both Northampton and Lehigh counties, so a case can belong to the Third Judicial District (Northampton County) or the Thirty-first Judicial District (Lehigh County), depending on where the alleged offense took place.
Common Charges: Straight Answers
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).
DUI is not on the five-year list in 42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(b), so the general two-year limit applies unless another provision extends it. The clock is measured to the start of the prosecution, not to trial.
How does Pennsylvania treat a small amount of marijuana?
Pennsylvania draws a specific line: a small amount of marijuana, meaning 30 grams or 8 grams of hashish, held only for personal use is a misdemeanor with a maximum of 30 days and $500 (35 P.S. § 780-113(a)(31), (g)). Possession of other controlled substances is a misdemeanor of up to a year and $5,000, and delivery or possession with intent to deliver is a felony graded by the drug.
A prior final conviction under the Act raises the possession ceiling from one year and $5,000 to three years and $25,000 (35 P.S. § 780-113(b)), which is one reason a record’s accuracy and its clearing matter.
What penalties come with an assault conviction?
For simple assault, a second-degree misdemeanor carries up to two years and a $5,000 fine (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 1104, 1101), with lower and higher grades in the mutual-fight and child-victim situations. Aggravated assault is a felony, up to 20 years for a first-degree felony and 10 for a second-degree felony (§§ 2702(b), 1103).
Assault convictions are treated differently for record clearing. Offenses against the person are excluded from automatic Clean Slate limited access (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.3), while the petition route has its own exclusions (§ 9122.1(b)), so eligibility depends on the exact offense and its maximum penalty.
Is retail theft a misdemeanor or a felony?
Retail theft (18 Pa.C.S. § 3929) can be either, depending on the facts. A first offense under $150 is only a summary offense and a second is a second-degree misdemeanor, but merchandise worth $150 or more is a first-degree misdemeanor, and a third or subsequent offense, an amount over $1,000, or a firearm or motor vehicle makes it a third-degree felony.
For record clearing, a third-degree felony theft offense can be the subject of a petition for limited access after 10 years, while first- and second-degree felonies are excluded (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.1(a.1)). A summary retail theft conviction may qualify for automatic limited access after five years (§ 9122.2).
Want someone to check the deadlines in your Bethlehem case? Get matched now.
Expunged, Sealed, or Limited: Why the Difference Matters
‘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.
The classic remedy is expungement (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122), which removes the record but applies in limited situations: cases without a conviction, acquittals on all charges (which are now expunged automatically), and Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition cases dismissed after completion (Pa.R.Crim.P. 320). A conviction can be expunged only if it was a summary offense after five clean years, or at 70 after ten clean years.
The automatic route is Clean Slate limited access (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.2). No petition is needed. Summary convictions qualify after five years, second- and third-degree misdemeanors (and misdemeanors punishable by two years or less) after seven years free of any conviction punishable by a year or more, and qualifying drug offenses after ten years, provided restitution and the fee are paid. Non-convictions are covered too.
Petition-based limited access (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.1) asks a court to limit access to a qualifying misdemeanor after seven years without a new conviction, or to a listed lower-level felony after ten. The felony list is specific (including theft, forgery, criminal mischief, and criminal trespass), first- and second-degree felonies are excluded, restitution and the fee must be paid, and the district attorney may object.
Several categories are generally off the table: offenses against the person, offenses against the family, firearms offenses, offenses that require sex-offender registration, and corruption of minors (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 9122.1, 9122.3). Other convictions in a person’s history can also make them ineligible.
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)).
A Note on Bethlehem and the Local Courts
Bethlehem cases are heard in Northampton 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 Northampton County matters can watch those dates for you.
If you were hurt in an accident instead, see personal injury help in Bethlehem.
Nearby coverage: our Doylestown page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a statute of limitations on criminal charges in Pennsylvania?
Yes. The general limit is two years (42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a)), with five years for a list of serious offenses and twelve years for major sexual offenses. Murder, voluntary manslaughter, and a few other offenses can be prosecuted at any time (§ 5551). The period stops running once a prosecution is commenced.
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.
What happens if I am charged with a summary offense?
It usually starts and finishes before a magisterial district judge, who has jurisdiction over summary offenses (42 Pa.C.S. § 1515). The penalty ceiling is 90 days and a $300 fine unless another statute provides otherwise (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 1105, 1101).
Where will my criminal case be heard in Bethlehem?
It typically begins in a magisterial district in Northampton County, chosen by where the offense is alleged to have occurred (Pa.R.Crim.P. 130), and a serious charge that goes forward is tried in the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County.
Can I be held in jail for a year waiting for trial?
Generally no. Rule 600(B) limits pretrial incarceration to 180 days from the complaint, excluding only delay caused by the defense, and the defense can move for release on nominal bail after that, unless the law does not entitle you to bail.
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).
Does completing ARD count as a conviction?
ARD is a diversion program that can end in dismissal instead of a conviction, but it is not invisible: for retail theft, a prior ARD counts when deciding whether a later theft is a first, second, or subsequent offense (18 Pa.C.S. § 3929(b.1)), and for DUI, driving under the influence within 10 years after completing ARD is a separate offense (75 Pa.C.S. § 3802(h)(1)).
What is the difference between expungement and sealing a record?
Expungement removes a record. Limited access, whether automatic (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.2) or by petition (§ 9122.1), keeps it out of most background checks but leaves it in existence and visible to criminal justice agencies. Many people mean limited access when they say ‘sealed.’
Who can still see a record after Clean Slate limited access?
Criminal justice agencies, child-welfare agencies, courts in custody and protection-from-abuse cases, employers whose federal rules require a criminal-history review, and a few others (18 Pa.C.S. § 9121(b.1), (b.2)).
Connect With a Bethlehem Criminal Defense Attorney
Questions about grading, time limits, Rule 600, or clearing a record are exactly what an initial conversation is for. Use the form to get matched with an attorney who can answer them for your case.
