Pennsylvania Misdemeanors

A misdemeanor is a criminal offense less serious than a felony and more serious than a summary offense. Pennsylvania groups misdemeanors into grades, namely, M1, M2, and M3. Each grade carries a legal maximum jail term and fine. Summary offenses (e.g., many public-order and low-level traffic matters) are, in comparison, a lower tier and typically carry penalties of fines, though up to 90 days’ jail is possible for some summaries.

What Is a Misdemeanor in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania’s Crimes Code sets the maximum jail time an offender can receive for misdemeanors at:

• up to 5 years (for M1),
• up to 2 years (for M2), and
• up to 1 year (for M3).

Felonies attract longer incarceration, while summary offenses sit below misdemeanors in terms of seriousness and punishments. Typical examples of misdemeanors include simple assault, retail theft (at low values or first offense), DUI/OVI (often an ungraded misdemeanor with offense-specific penalties), disorderly conduct, and harassment.

Pennsylvania’s DUI statute, 75 Pa.C.S. § 3802, defines per se and impairment-based offenses. Penalties are in section 3804 and vary by alcohol level, prior history, and whether the DUI is “general impairment” (often an ungraded misdemeanor with 6 months’ probation for a first offense) or a higher-tier DUI with mandatory jail and license suspension. DMV and PennDOT may also require the offender’s license to be suspended or that they get ignition interlock devices.

A summary offense is the least serious tier. The Crimes Code authorizes no more than 90 days’ imprisonment unless another law states otherwise. Many summary matters are only penalized with fines.

Misdemeanor Classes and Penalties in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania law sets maximum jail time and fine amounts. Many offenses also carry mandatory minimums or special conditions like DUI education, treatment, and ignition interlock.

• M1 (First-degree misdemeanor): Offenders can receive up to 5 years in jail and $10,000 in fines.
• M2 (Second-degree misdemeanor): These offenses can get offenders up to 2 years and $5,000 in fines.
• M3 (Third-degree misdemeanor): Offenders can get up to a year in jail and $2,500 in fines.
• Summary offense: Offenders can get up to 90 days and fines set by law.

Courts may also impose probation or community control, restitution, no-contact orders, treatment, and community service. DUI sentencing follows its own structure in Section 3804, with license sanctions dependent on offense level.

Misdemeanor Court Process in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania's "minor" courts, which include the Municipal Courts in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh as well as the Magisterial District Judge Courts (MDJCs) spread throughout the state, handle preliminary arraignments and hearings in criminal cases, set bail, and resolve summary offenses (and some city ordinance matters).

Common Pleas Courts are general jurisdiction trial courts that hear felonies and misdemeanors through to judgment. In Philadelphia, the Municipal Court also tries most misdemeanor cases.

Typical path from stop to sentencing.

1. Citation or arrest & complaint: The process starts with an arrest or citation filed in the proper court (often an MDJ or Municipal Court).
2. Preliminary arraignment: During arraignments, the defendant gets to know their rights and also gets official legal representation. Their bail is also set.
3. Preliminary hearing (for Misdemeanor/Felony court cases): The Commonwealth must show prima facie proof. If the case is determined to be a felony, it proceeds to the Court of Common Pleas or remains in Philadelphia Municipal Court if that court has trial jurisdiction.
4. Formal arraignment: During this stage, discovery, motions, plea discussions, and (if applicable) diversion/problem-solving courts (such as ARD for DUI/first-time non-violent crimes) are all completed during this phase.
5. Trial: Jury-eligible misdemeanors are tried to six jurors unless it is waived.
6. Sentencing: After a decision, the court imposes jail time in a county, probation, fines, restitution, and program conditions.

Misdemeanor Records in Major Pennsylvania Cities

Pennsylvania offers a free public portal for record access available through the state. The clerk’s file remains the official record. However, sealed and limited-access items will not appear online.

• Philadelphia: The First Judicial District (Philadelphia Courts) hosts local information and payments, but to find state-level records, use the Unified Judicial System (UJS) Web Portal. Here, you can get Philadelphia Municipal Court and Common Pleas records.
• Pittsburgh (Allegheny County): Pittsburgh Municipal Court handles traffic, non-traffic, and criminal matters, including preliminary hearings for misdemeanor and felony cases. Case lookups and Common Pleas calendars are available via the UJS Case Search.
• Allentown (Lehigh County). You can pay all county fines online via PAePay. You can use the MDJ lookuptool to find which MDJ covers a city address in Lehigh County, while you can find case dockets on the UJS portal.

You can see the following information online: party names, case number, charges with statute cites, Register of Actions (docket entries), upcoming court dates, dispositions, sentence terms, and financial balances. For certified copies or un-imaged documents, you can contact the Clerk of Courts for the county listed on the record.

How to Search for Misdemeanor Records in Pennsylvania

1. Use the UJS Web Portal: Case Search: You can search across Philadelphia Municipal Court, Magisterial District Courts, Courts of Common Pleas, and appellate courts by name, docket number, OTN, incident/complaint number, or SID.
2. Find the right docket type:
   • MDJ dockets and Philadelphia Municipal Court dockets are available in the “Docket Sheets – Minor Courts” section.
   • Common Pleas criminal dockets (trial-level misdemeanor/felony cases) can be found under“Docket Sheets – Common Pleas.”
3. Pay online: Use the PAePay to pay traffic tickets, fines, costs, restitution, or bail in participating courts. The UJS portal explains accepted cards and the 2.75% fee.
4. Certified copies: The portal provides records, but there are limited document images. For certified judgments, orders, or transcripts, contact the county Clerk of Courts (for Common Pleas) or the MDJ office (for minor-court files).

A docket sheet is not your official criminal history. For background-check purposes, use the Pennsylvania State Police criminal history system.

How Long Does a Misdemeanor Stay on Your Record in Pennsylvania?

You can remove a misdemeanor from your record through relief in two major ways, depending on whether you qualify. These are:

1) Clean Slate (automatic sealing)

Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate lawsautomatically seal many convictions after a waiting period if the offender remains free of any conviction and meets eligibility criteria.

• Misdemeanor convictions: Automatic sealing happens after 7 conviction-free years (reduced from 10).
• Summary convictions: Automatic sealing happens after 5 years, as long as there are no convictions.
• Certain low-level drug felonies are eligible for sealing after 10 years (some automatically, some by petition). Additional property felonies (e.g., third-degree theft/forgery) may be sealed by petition after 10 years if conditions are met.

Clean Slate relief seals a record; this means that they are hidden from most public checks but remain available to courts, law enforcement, and a defined set of agencies.

2) Petition for Limited Access (court-ordered sealing)

Separate from automation, individuals may petition for “limited access” for eligible offenses after a conviction-free period. The law (18 Pa.C.S. § 9122.1) authorizes court-ordered sealing under defined conditions.

3) Expungement (destruction of records)

It is possible to have your records expunged, but it is limited to adult convictions. Records that can be expunged include:

• Non-convictions (dismissed, withdrawn, nolle prossed, or not guilty).
• ARD and certain diversion outcomes.
• Summary convictions may be expunged by petition after 5 years arrest-free.
• Adult misdemeanor or felony convictions generally are not expungeable unless you obtain a pardon, or you are 70+ and arrest-free for 10 years (or deceased 3+ years).

Without a court order or automatic relief, a misdemeanor can remain publicly accessible indefinitely. Today, many Pennsylvanians qualify for automatic sealing after 7 years (misdemeanors) or 5 years (summaries), while non-convictions can often be expunged. For convictions that are not Clean Slate-eligible, relief may require a petition (limited access) or a pardon followed by expungement.