Section 231. Written Allegation

A. Submission. In every delinquency case, the law enforcement officer shall submit a written allegation to the juvenile probation office.

1) Juvenile not under arrest. When a juvenile is not under arrest, a written allegation shall be submitted to the juvenile probation office and a copy shall be forwarded to the attorney for the Commonwealth unless the District Attorney elects to require initial receipt and approval of the written allegation under paragraph (B).

2) Juvenile under arrest. When a juvenile is under arrest, a written allegation shall be submitted promptly to the court or detention facility, and copies shall be immediately forwarded to the juvenile probation office and the attorney for the Commonwealth unless the District Attorney elects to require initial receipt and approval of the written allegation under paragraph (B).

B. Approval by the District Attorney. The District Attorney of any county may require initial receipt and approval of written allegations by an attorney for the Commonwealth before a delinquency proceeding is commenced.

1) Certification. If the District Attorney elects to require initial receipt and approval of written allegations in his or her county, the District Attorney shall file a certification with the court of common pleas. The certification shall specifically state the classes, grading, or types of cases that the police officer shall submit to the attorney for the Commonwealth.

2) Timeliness. All written allegations shall be approved or disapproved without unreasonable delay. An attorney for the Commonwealth shall be available at all times for this purpose unless the District Attorney has specified otherwise in the certification pursuant to (B)(1).

C. Procedures Following the Attorney for the Commonwealth’s Approval.

1) Juvenile not under arrest. If a juvenile is not under arrest and an attorney for the Commonwealth approves the written allegation, notice of the approval and a copy of the written allegation shall be forwarded immediately to the juvenile probation office.

2) Juvenile under arrest. If a juvenile is under arrest, the written allegation shall be submitted to the attorney for the Commonwealth and approved prior to taking the juvenile to a detention facility. If the written allegation is approved, it shall be submitted promptly to the court or detention facility. A copy of the notice of the approval and the written allegation shall be forwarded to the juvenile probation office.

D. Attorney for the Commonwealth’s Disapproval. If the written allegation has been disapproved for prosecution, it shall nevertheless be transmitted to the juvenile probation office with notice of the disapproval. If the juvenile is in custody, the juvenile shall be released immediately unless there are other grounds for the juvenile’s detention.

Comment

A ‘‘petition’’ and a ‘‘written allegation’’ are two separate documents and serve two distinct functions. A ‘‘written allegation’’ is the document that initiates juvenile delinquency proceedings. Usually, the ‘‘written allegation’’ will be filed by a law enforcement officer and will allege that the juvenile has committed a delinquent act that comes within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. Once this document is submitted, a preliminary determination of the juvenile court’s jurisdiction is to be made. Informal adjustment and other diversionary programs may be pursued. If the attorney for the Commonwealth or the juvenile probation officer determines that formal juvenile court action is necessary, a petition is then filed.

See Rules 210 (Arrest Warrants) and 220 (Procedures in Cases Commenced by Arrest Without Warrant) for the procedures on submitting written allegations for arrests.

Under paragraphs (A)(2) and (C)(2), the police officer is to submit the written allegation promptly to the intake staff at the court or the detention facility.

As used in this rule, ‘‘District Attorney’’ is the District Attorney of each county. This rule gives the District Attorney of each county the option of requiring that written allegations and /or arrest warrant affidavits filed in that county by police officers have the prior approval of an attorney for the Commonwealth. Under the rule, the District Attorney may elect to require prior approval of written allegation, or arrest warrant affidavits (see Rule 210), or both. In addition, the District Attorney is given the authority to define which offenses or grades of offenses will require such prior approval. For example, the District Attorney may specify that prior approval will be required only if a felony is alleged, or that prior approval will be required for all cases.

Under paragraph (B), the District Attorney decides whether an attorney for the Commonwealth receives initial receipt and approval of written allegations. Once the District Attorney has filed a certification with the court under paragraph (B)(1), any attorney for the Commonwealth may receive and approve written allegations as specified in the certification by the District Attorney. This procedure creates a new option for the District Attorney to decide if written allegations need to be approved by an attorney for the Commonwealth. To implement this procedure, Rule 800 suspends 42 Pa.C.S. § 6304, only to the extent that probation officers may have to seek approval of any attorney for the Commonwealth.

Under paragraph (D), a juvenile should be released from custody unless there are other legally sufficient bases for detaining the juvenile, such as, violation of probation or other pending allegations.

If a juvenile is detained, the juvenile is to be placed in a detention facility, which does not include a county jail or state prison. See Rule 120 and its Comment for definition of ‘‘detention facility.’’

Official Note

Rule 231 adopted April 1, 2005, effective October 1, 2005. Amended June 28, 2013, effective immediately.

Committee Explanatory Reports:

Final Report explaining the provisions of Rule 231 published with the Court’s Order at 35 Pa.B. 2214 (April 16, 2005).

Final Report explaining the amendments to Rule 231 published with the Court’s Order at 43 Pa.B. 3938 (July 13, 2013).

The provisions of this Rule 231 amended June 28, 2013, effective immediately, 43 Pa.B. 3938. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (347590) to (347592).