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Rule 560 – Information: Filing, Contents, Function

May 14, 2021 | Criminal Procedure, Pennsylvania

(A) After the defendant has been held for court following a preliminary hearing or an indictment, the attorney for the Commonwealth shall proceed by preparing an information and filing it with the court of common pleas.
(B) The information shall be signed by the attorney for the Commonwealth and shall be valid and sufficient in law if it contains:

(1) a caption showing that the prosecution is carried on in the name of and by the authority of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania;
(2) the name of the defendant, or if the defendant is unknown, a description of the defendant as nearly as may be;
(3) the date when the offense is alleged to have been committed if the precise date is known, and the day of the week if it is an essential element of the offense charged, provided that if the precise date is not known or if the offense is a continuing one, an allegation that it was committed on or about any date within the period fixed by the statute of limitations shall be sufficient;
(4) the county where the offense is alleged to have been committed;
(5) a plain and concise statement of the essential elements of the offense substantially the same as or cognate to the offense alleged in the complaint;
(6) a concluding statement that “all of which is against the Act of Assembly and the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth”; and
(7) a certification that the information complies with the provisions of the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania regarding confidential information and documents.
(C) The information shall contain the official or customary citation of the statute and section thereof, or other provision of law that the defendant is alleged therein to have violated; but the omission of or error in such citation shall not affect the validity or sufficiency of the information.
(D) In all court cases tried on an information, the issues at trial shall be defined by such information.

234 Pa. Code ยง 560

Amended by Pennsylvania Bulletin, Vol 48, No. 03. January 20, 2018, effective 1/20/2018
Amended by Pennsylvania Bulletin, Vol 48, No. 24. June 16, 2018, effective 6/16/2018

Committee Explanatory Reports:

Final Report explaining the August 14, 1995 amendments published with the Court’s Order at 25 Pa.B. 3468 (August 26, 1995) .

Final Report explaining the March 1, 2000 reorganization and renumbering of the rules published with the Court’s Order at 30 Pa.B. 1478 (March 18, 2000) .

Final Report explaining the April 23, 2004 Comment revision published with the Court’s Order at 34 Pa.B. 2543 (May 15, 2004) .

Final Report explaining the August 24, 2004 Comment revision concerning failure to appear for preliminary hearing published with the Court’s Order at 34 Pa.B. 5025 (September 11, 2004) .

Final Report explaining the March 9, 2006 Coment revision concerning joinder of summary offenses with misdemeanor, felony, or murder charges published with the Court’s Order at 36 Pa.B. 1392 (March 25, 2006) .

Final Report explaining the June 21, 2012 amendments to paragraph (A) concerning indicting grand juries published with the Court’s Order at 42 Pa.B. 4153 (July 7, 2012) .