What is a Criminal Offense?

What is a Criminal Offense? A criminal offense is an act that violates state or federal law. In order for there to be a criminal conviction, the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused committed a “guilty act” (actus reus) while having the guilty mind-state (mens rea) required by law. In the United States, all Defendant’s are presumed innocent until proven guilty, and may not be found guilty until the government proves each and every element of a criminal offense beyond a reasonable doubt.

If you or a loved one is charged with a criminal offense, it is important that you have an experienced, knowledgeable and aggressive attorney on your side.

Call The Law Offices of Roy Galloway, LLC at (717) 737-3300 to talk about your case and allow us to develop a strategy to obtain a favorable outcome in your case.

There is no fee for an initial consultation


What is an element of an Criminal offense? Generally speaking, most criminal offenses have at least two elements that must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt to convict a person. Generally, in order to achieve a conviction, the prosecution must not only prove that a person committed a guilty act that is forbidden by law, but must also prove that the person possessed a guilty mind-state at the time that the guilty act was committed (e.g. the defendant must have acted intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, or negligently). In other words, in most cases, except for crimes where a person is guilty “per se” where no mental state must be proven such as statutory rape, in order to get a conviction the prosecutor not only has the burden to prove that the accused committed a guilty act; but the prosecutor must also prove the accused possessed the guilty mind-state at the time the guilty act was committed.

Below is a hypothetical fact pattern to illustrate the application of the requirements that a prosecutor prove an accused committed a guilty act while possessing the requisite guilty mind-state in order to achieve a conviction

On December 24, 2014, Pennsylvania State Police makes an arrest of John Doe in Hershey, Pennsylvania for illegally possessing cocaine, a schedule two (2) controlled substance. At the time John Doe was arrested, he was attending a Hershey’s Bears game and he was wearing his brother Jason Doe’s Philadelphia Eagles jacket and unbeknownst to him inside the jacket’s pocket was 4 baggies of cocaine. Canine dogs at Giant Center hit on the smell of drugs emitting from John’s jacket and he was subjected to a search, which yielded 4 baggies of cocaine. John was subsequently arrested and charged with possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance. In order to prove John Doe committed the act of possessing the controlled substance with the intent to deliver it beyond a reasonable doubt, the prosecutor must prove: (1) the substance was a controlled substance, (2) John possessed the controlled substance, (3) John knowingly possessed the controlled substance, and (4) John had the intent to deliver the controlled substance. Under the aforementioned example, John may be able to escape a conviction because while he possessed the controlled substance, he did not have the guilty mind-state required under the law because he was wearing his brother Jason’s jacket and did not have knowledge of the presence of the cocaine. The law requires that the prosecution prove the guilty act and that the accused possessed the requisite guilty mind-state at the time that the guilty act was committed. In the above example, the prosecution may run into problems securing a conviction of John Doe because John did not knowingly act. Rather, John had no clue that he was in possession of a controlled substance, which is required to be proven “beyond a reasonable doubt” to convict John. 
In Pennsylvania, there are three categories of criminal offenses: (1) summaries, (2) misdemeanors and (3) felony offenses. 

Summary Offenses

Summary offenses are the least serious of all of the categories of offenses in Pennsylvania because they carry a maximum sentence of 90 days imprisonment and a $300 fine. The most common summary offenses are disorderly conduct, underage drinking, harassment, and retail theft. In most cases, individuals charged with summary offenses will NOT serve time in jail, but will receive a fine and/or probation. However, a summary offense is a criminal offense and may lead to jail time, a fine, a loss of a driver’s license and difficulty obtaining employment. 

It is worth noting that a summary offense may be expunged 5 years after a conviction if the person has not been charged or convicted of any new offenses. In order to obtain an expungement, the defendant must petition the court of common pleas in the county where the incident occurred to expunge his/her record.

Additionally, a person charged with a summary offense may apply for the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (“ARD”) program, which a pretrial diversionary program for first time non-violent offenders that gives individuals an opportunity to have their criminal charges dismissed upon their successful completion of a brief period of probation, the payment of fines, court costs, and restitution and other conditions set forth by the court. It is worth noting that the prosecutor’s offense in each individual county controls who are admitted into the ARD program and determines the eligibility criteria for admission into the program. Generally speaking, defendants with felony charges are not admitted into the ARD program. However, our office has been successful secured the admission of clients charged with felony offenses into the ARD program, which allowed them to have the charges dismissed and their arrest record erased. 


Misdemeanor Offenses

In Pennsylvania, misdemeanor offenses are more serious than summary offenses, but less serious than felony offenses. In Pennsylvania, persons convicted of a misdemeanor offense may face jail time, fines, court costs, license suspensions, deportation, the loss of certain professional licenses and a ban from being employed in certain professions like teaching, being a child care provider, working with the elderly or working in the medical field. There are three degrees of misdemeanor offenses in Pennsylvania. Misdemeanor offenses range from misdemeanors of the first, second and third degrees. There are, however, several offenses that are ungraded misdemeanors such a simple possession of a small amount of marijuana. The penalties for the three degrees of misdemeanors are as follows:

  • 1st degree misdemeanors- carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 5 years and a maximum fine of $10,000.00;
  • 2nd degree misdemeanors- carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 2 years and a maximum fine of $5,000.00;
  • 3rd degree misdemeanors- carries a maximum term of imprison of 1 year and a maximum fine of $2,500.00;
  • Ungraded misdemeanors- a crime declared to be a misdemeanor without specification of degree is considered to be a misdemeanor of the third degree.

There are some crimes that are ungraded misdemeanors that carry a significantly lower sentence than a 3rd degree misdemeanor. For example, possession of a small amount of marijuana is an ungraded misdemeanor, but it carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 days and a maximum fine of $500.00.

Most first time offenders charged with misdemeanor offenses that are represented by our office are admitted into the ARD program, which allows them to avoid having a criminal record. However, we have heard horror stories of individuals who were charged with misdemeanor offenses for the first time and their defense attorneys failed to seek their admission into the ARD program, which means they are left with the scars of a having a criminal record. It is important to note that, generally speaking, misdemeanor criminal records in Pennsylvania are not eligible for expungement, unless the accused was admitted into the ARD program. 

In order to have a misdemeanor record expunged a person must apply for admission into ARD program before they enter a guilty plea or are found guilty. Thus, if a person charged with a misdemeanor offense fails to apply for the ARD program prior to their conviction, they are left with a criminal record. If you or a loved one are charged with a misdemeanor offense, it is important that you first talk with an experienced criminal defense attorney as early on in the process as possible to avoid any potentially negative consequences.

Currently, there is a bill pending in the Pennsylvania General Assembly to broaden Pennsylvania’s expungement laws to cover certain misdemeanor offenses. If this bill is passed, many individuals with misdemeanor records will qualify to have their records expunged.

FELONY OFFENSES
In Pennsylvania, felony offenses are the most serious category of criminal offenses. There are three degrees of felony offenses in Pennsylvania. Certain felony offenses like murder are punishable by life in prison and capital punishment. 

The penalties for the three degrees of felony offenses are as follows:

  • 1st degree felonies- carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years and a maximum fine of $25,000.00;
  • 2nd degree felonies- carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum fine of $25,000.00
  • 3rd degree felonies- carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 7 years and a maximum fine of $15,000.00.

Pennsylvania does have some offenses that are classified as ungraded felonies that carry different penalties than 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree felonies. For example, the offense of Possession with the Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance is an ungraded felony that is punishable by a maximum sentence of 15 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000. 

Furthermore, under Pennsylvania law, ungraded felony offenses are deemed felonies of the third degree, unless otherwise set forth by statute. 

Moreover, there are some felonies in Pennsylvania that are punishable by fines and jail terms greater than the penalties set forth above. For example, the crimes of murder and rape of a child under the age of 13 resulting in serious bodily injury are punishable by life in prison without the possibility of parole. And, the crimes of 3rd degree murder and rape of a child are punishable by up to 40 years imprisonment. 

In Pennsylvania, felony offenses cannot be expunged, unless the accused is entered into the ARD program. Furthermore, a conviction of a felony offense may lead to jail time, fines, court costs, restitution, deportation, a loss of driving privileges, and other collateral consequences such as a ban from working in certain protected professions such as education, child care and the medical profession. 

If you or a loved one is charged with a criminal offense, it is important that you have an experienced, knowledgeable and aggressive attorney on your side.

Call The Law Offices of Roy Galloway, LLC at (717) 737-3300 to talk about your case and allow us to develop a strategy to obtain a favorable outcome in your case. There is no fee for an initial consultation.

4309 Linglestown Rd. Harrisburg, PA 17112