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Your Bloomsburg Criminal Defense Attorney
Nothing about a criminal charge in Bloomsburg is small to the person facing it. Pennsylvania law gives you fixed reference points, from how a charge is graded to when a trial must start to what can eventually come off a record. 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. Talking with an attorney who knows Columbia County practice can turn these general rules into a plan for your case.
The Short Answers: Time Limits, Trial Timing, and Records
- Most criminal charges must be started within 2 years of the offense, per 42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a), while listed serious offenses carry 5 or 12 years.
- 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.
- Held in jail before trial: 180 days is the limit on pretrial incarceration under Rule 600(B), after which you can ask for release on nominal bail, unless the law does not allow bail in your case.
- Every charge has a grade: felony of the first, second, or third degree, misdemeanor of the first, second, or third degree, or summary offense (18 Pa.C.S. § 106). The grade caps the penalty.
- 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).
How Pennsylvania Grades Criminal Charges
Pennsylvania sorts crimes into classes under 18 Pa.C.S. § 106. Felonies are graded first, second, or third degree, misdemeanors are graded first, second, or third degree, and the lowest level is a summary offense. The grade matters because it sets the ceiling on the sentence.
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). The fine ceilings under 18 Pa.C.S. § 1101 are $25,000 for first- and second-degree felonies, $15,000 for third-degree felonies, $10,000 for a first-degree misdemeanor, $5,000 for a second-degree misdemeanor, $2,500 for a third-degree misdemeanor, and $300 for a summary offense, subject to any specific statute.
Section 106 also fills the gaps: a felony or misdemeanor without a stated degree is third degree, and an offense punishable by no more than 90 days is summary.
The Statute of Limitations on a Pennsylvania Criminal Charge
Pennsylvania’s general rule is short: unless another provision says otherwise, a prosecution must be started within two years after the offense (42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a)). Many misdemeanors, and offenses such as simple assault and DUI, fall under that two-year rule.
The exceptions run long. Aggravated assault, burglary, robbery, theft, forgery, and offenses punishable under § 13(f) of the Controlled Substance Act are on a five-year list (§ 5552(b)), the most serious sexual offenses on a twelve-year list (§ 5552(b.1)), and murder and voluntary manslaughter can be prosecuted at any time (§ 5551).
What stops the clock is the start of the prosecution: an indictment, an information, or a warrant, summons, or citation that is served without unreasonable delay (§ 5552(e)). Under § 5554 the period is also paused while the accused is continuously absent from the state or cannot reasonably be located here, or while a prosecution for the same conduct is pending.
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Is There a Hard Deadline to Bring Me to Trial in Pennsylvania?
Under Pa.R.Crim.P. 600, a trial in a court case must commence within 365 days of the complaint. The remedy is not automatic: the defense files a written motion, the court holds a hearing, and if the rule was violated the dismissal is with prejudice, so the charges cannot be refiled. 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.
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. Courts do not treat delay as one thing. Emergency orders suspending Rule 600 during the pandemic excluded hundreds of days in Commonwealth v. Malone (2023), while in Commonwealth v. Harth (2021) the Supreme Court held that judicial delay can excuse a late trial only if the Commonwealth was diligent.
A different, shorter limit protects someone held before trial: 180 days from the complaint under Rule 600(B). Only delay caused by the defense is excluded from that count, and the remedy is a motion for immediate release on nominal bail, unless bail is not available in the case.
The Courts Behind a Bloomsburg Criminal Charge
Most Pennsylvania criminal cases begin before a magisterial district judge, who handles summary offenses, arraignments, and bail, and sits as the committing magistrate at preliminary hearings (42 Pa.C.S. § 1515). Charges that continue past that stage are tried in the Court of Common Pleas.
The trial court for Bloomsburg is the Court of Common Pleas of Columbia County, part of the Twenty-sixth Judicial District (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 901, 951), and the county seat is Bloomsburg. Which magisterial district hears the case is set by where the offense is alleged to have occurred (Pa.R.Crim.P. 130). The Twenty-sixth Judicial District covers Columbia and Montour counties together.
What These Charges Mean in Pennsylvania
What happens if I am charged with DUI in Bloomsburg?
Pennsylvania’s DUI law has tiers. General impairment covers driving while unable to drive safely or with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 to under 0.10, high rate covers 0.10 to under 0.16, and highest rate covers 0.16 and above (75 Pa.C.S. § 3802). For a first offense the minimums rise with the tier: six months of probation and a $300 fine, then at least 48 hours in jail and $500 to $5,000, then at least 72 hours and $1,000 to $5,000 (§ 3804).
Refusing a breath test or blood test under a valid warrant changes the tier: a general-impairment charge with a refusal is sentenced under the highest tier, with at least 72 consecutive hours in jail and a $1,000 to $5,000 fine for a first offense (75 Pa.C.S. §§ 3803, 3804(c)).
How serious is a drug charge in Pennsylvania?
The law separates using or holding a drug from selling or moving it. Simple possession is a misdemeanor, up to one year and $5,000 (up to three years and $25,000 after a prior conviction); a small amount of marijuana, defined as 30 grams or 8 grams of hashish, is a misdemeanor with a 30-day and $500 ceiling; and delivery or possession with intent to deliver is a felony graded by drug and quantity, up to 15 years and $250,000 for a Schedule I or II narcotic (35 P.S. § 780-113).
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 does Pennsylvania grade assault charges?
Simple assault is graded second-degree misdemeanor, with exceptions: third degree for a mutual-consent fight and first degree against a child under 12 by an adult (18 Pa.C.S. § 2701(b)). Aggravated assault (§ 2702) is graded first-degree felony under subsections (a)(1), (2), and (9) and second-degree felony under the rest.
The time limit differs by charge. Aggravated assault is on the five-year list in 42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(b), while simple assault falls under the two-year default, and certain aggravated assaults on a law-enforcement officer acting in the line of duty, where the accused knew the victim was an officer, have no limitation period at all (§ 5551).
What is the penalty for shoplifting in Pennsylvania?
Shoplifting is charged as retail theft under 18 Pa.C.S. § 3929. A first offense involving merchandise worth less than $150 is a summary offense, a second offense under $150 is a second-degree misdemeanor, $150 or more is a first-degree misdemeanor, and a third or later offense, or one over $1,000, is a third-degree felony.
The same conduct can be graded very differently: a first shoplifting offense under $150 is a summary offense, while the same merchandise taken as part of a scheme, or with priors, can be a misdemeanor or felony (18 Pa.C.S. § 3929).
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Expunged, Sealed, or Limited: Why the Difference Matters
There is no single ‘clear my record’ button in Pennsylvania. The law provides expungement, an automatic Clean Slate process, and a petition process, each with its own waiting periods, conditions, and exclusions.
Expungement (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122) removes the record, and it is narrow. It covers charges that did not end in a conviction, acquittals on all charges (now expunged automatically), and completed Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition cases (Pa.R.Crim.P. 320). For a conviction, it is available for a summary offense after five years free of arrest or prosecution, or at age 70 after ten years free of arrest following release from confinement or supervision.
Clean Slate limited access (§ 9122.2) is automatic, with no petition, once the waiting period has passed and court-ordered restitution and a fee are paid: five years for a summary conviction; seven years without another conviction punishable by a year or more for a second- or third-degree misdemeanor or any misdemeanor punishable by no more than two years; and ten years for a qualifying drug offense under the Controlled Substance Act. Non-conviction outcomes are included.
If the automatic process does not apply, a petition for limited access under 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.1 may. It is available for a qualifying misdemeanor after seven years without a new conviction and for a specified third-degree or lower felony (such as theft, forgery, criminal mischief, or criminal trespass) after ten, but not for first- or second-degree felonies. Restitution and a fee must be paid, and the prosecutor may 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.
Limited access is not erasure. The State Police and the courts must withhold a limited-access record from most background checks (18 Pa.C.S. § 9121), but the record still exists and criminal justice agencies can see it. A few requesters can still get it, including child-welfare agencies, custody and protection-from-abuse cases, and employers whose federal rules require a criminal-history review. Even after an expungement, including one that follows a diversion or probation program, the prosecutor and the State Police keep a list of names, used only to decide eligibility for later programs, to identify people in criminal investigations, and to grade later offenses (§ 9122(c)).
A Note on Bloomsburg and the Local Courts
Deadlines and clocks are the same across Pennsylvania, and the courtroom is not. A charge in Bloomsburg is handled in Columbia County, and getting the timeline for that court from an attorney who practices there is a sound first step.
For an injury claim rather than a criminal charge, see our Bloomsburg personal injury page.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can the state wait to charge me with a crime in Pennsylvania?
Usually two years from the offense (42 Pa.C.S. § 5552(a)). Aggravated assault, burglary, robbery, theft, forgery, and certain drug offenses get five years, major sexual offenses get twelve, and murder and voluntary manslaughter have no limit. The clock stops 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).
How much prison time can a felony carry in Pennsylvania?
Up to 20 years for a felony of the first degree, 10 for the second, and 7 for the third (18 Pa.C.S. § 1103), with fines up to $25,000 for the first two degrees and $15,000 for the third (§ 1101).
What is the penalty for a summary offense?
Up to 90 days in jail and, unless another statute says otherwise, a fine of up to $300 (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 1105, 1101). Some summary offenses have their own fines set by the statute that creates them.
How does a criminal case move through the Pennsylvania courts?
Most cases start before a magisterial district judge (arraignment, bail, preliminary hearing, and summary offenses), then move to the Court of Common Pleas for trial (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 931, 1515).
Is there a limit on pretrial jail time in Pennsylvania?
Yes: 180 days from the complaint, excluding only defense-caused delay (Pa.R.Crim.P. 600(B)). The exception is a defendant who is not entitled to bail under Pennsylvania law.
What is the penalty for a first DUI in Pennsylvania?
It rises with the tier: six months of probation and $300 (general impairment), 48 consecutive hours and $500 to $5,000 (high rate), or 72 consecutive hours and $1,000 to $5,000 (highest rate, refusal, or controlled substances), plus alcohol highway school and treatment (75 Pa.C.S. § 3804).
Will ARD for a DUI count against me later?
It can. Since December 22, 2025, driving under the influence within 10 years after completing ARD for a DUI is a separate offense under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3802(h)(1), graded under § 3803(c).
Can I get my record expunged in Pennsylvania?
Sometimes, through one of three routes. Expungement (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122) covers some non-convictions, acquittals, ARD cases, and only a few convictions, such as a summary offense after five arrest-free years. Automatic Clean Slate limited access (§ 9122.2) and limited access by petition (§ 9122.1) cover more, but restrict access rather than remove the record.
What are the exclusions for Clean Slate in Pennsylvania?
For automatic Clean Slate limited access, convictions for offenses involving danger to the person, offenses against the family, firearms offenses, offenses requiring sex-offender registration, animal cruelty, and corruption of minors are excluded, as is anyone who has ever been convicted of a felony other than a qualifying drug offense, or of several other serious offenses (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.3(a)).
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