Legal Question in Criminal Law in Pennsylvania

Re: Criminal defense and public defender

I think what probably happened is that the Judge did not accept the plea agreement. I've seen that happen before but it's rare.

What probably happened was that the District Attorney and the Public Defender agreed on a sentence and entered into a plea agreement but that is not binding on the Court. When the Judge did not accept the plea agreement the Public Defender then withdrew the plea and the case is proceeding to Trial.

There is no easy answer here. Trials consume a lot of time and effort and attorneys fees for a private attorney are likely to be substantial. If the Judge rejected the plea agreement, then it's not going to be an easy trial and that's probably why the Public Defender doesn't want to represent your son at this point.

Since your son's been incarcerated for nine months, I have to assume that he was unable to make bail. If you do not have sufficient funds to bail him out, I think he and the Public Defender are probably stuck together unless the Public Defender has a conflict and can get another attorney appointed by the Court at County expense. His incarceration does bring another issue to mind, though. If he did not request any continuances or delays in the case, there may be a defense related to his right to a speedy trial. I suggest that it is probably worthwhile to pay some money to a local private attorney to discuss the case.