Legal Question in Criminal Law in Pennsylvania

Thank you for your question. In order to be eligible for Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition ("ARD"), you are required to waive the preliminary hearing. How long it takes for your application for ARD to be approved by the District Attorney's Office depends on how busy that office is, but the average time is between 4 to 6 weeks. ARD is normally offered for first offenses, so you should have your Attorney plead your case with the District Attorney, informing them that although you were eligible for ARD for your first offense, it was never offered. (This is not really a valid reason to request ARD, but I cannot think of any valid argument which can be made for asking for ARD for a second offense).

If you are not eligible for ARD, but your Attorney has a good relationship with the District Attorney's Office, your Attorney might be able to convince the District Attorney to allow you to do community service in lieu of incarceration. But, even if that is not possible, your Attorney can ask that any jail time be served on weekends, from 6:00 PM Friday to 6:00 PM Sunday. "Weekenders" are usually housed in a separate area and away from the general jail population.