As amended through January 1, 2018
(a)Arraignment.(1) Arraignment shall take place in open court at such time as designated by the Court Administrator as required by these rules.(2) If a defendant wishes to plead not guilty, said plea shall be noted on the information and signed by the defendant. If the defendant wishes to plead guilty or nolo contendere, the Court shall conduct a colloquy on the record prior to accepting a plea of guilty or nolo contendere. The defendant shall be advised that he or she will not be required to attend calendar call or jury selection unless the plea is not entered or is refused by the Court in which case the defendant will be required to follow the original schedule provided to him or her on the Criminal Case Scheduling Form.(b)Waiver of Arraignment.(1) A defendant who has counsel of record may, prior to arraignment, waive the arraignment by filing a Waiver of Arraignment Form in the Clerk of Courts' office substantially similar to Form L571. A copy of the waiver shall be served upon the District Attorney pursuant to 37.R.Crim.P. L 576.(2) If a written Waiver of Arraignment is filed prior to the scheduled date of arraignment, the scheduled date of arraignment shall be deemed the day of arraignment for the purpose of computing time limitations for filing all pre-trial motions and requests pursuant to Pa.R.Crim.P. 567, 568, 572, 573, 578 and 579 and for the purpose of scheduling further dates pursuant to these rules. Click here to view image