APPENDIX TO TITLE 18
CRIMES AND OFFENSES
Supplementary Provisions of Amendatory Statutes
1972, DECEMBER 6, P.L.1482, NO.334
§ 2. Offenses committed prior to June 6, 1973.
Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes (relating to crimes and offenses), as added by this act, does not apply to offenses committed prior to the effective date of this act and prosecutions for such offenses shall be governed by the prior law, which is continued in effect for that purpose, as if this act were not in force. For the purposes of this section, an offense was committed prior to the effective date of this act if any of the elements of the offense occurred prior thereto.
§ 3. Severability.
If any provision of this act or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the act which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this act are declared to be severable.
§ 4. Applicability of Statutory Construction Act.
Sections 72 and 94 of the Statutory Construction Act shall not be applicable to any provision of Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes (relating to crimes and offenses) as added by this act, except Article G (relating to miscellaneous offenses) of Part II (relating to definition of specific offenses).
References in Text. The Statutory Construction Act of 1937, referred to in text, was repealed December 6, 1972, P.L.1339, No.290, effective immediately, and the former provisions of sections 72 and 94 are now contained in sections 1952 and 1974, respectively, of Title 1 (General Provisions).
§ 6. Effective date.
This act shall take effect January 1, 1972, or six months from the date of final enactment, whichever is later.
Effective Date. The effective date of Act 334 was June 6, 1973.
1974, MARCH 26, P.L.213, NO.46
§ 5. Severability.
If any subparagraph, paragraph, or subsection of section 2502 of the "Crimes Code," as amended by this act, or any other provision of this act or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other subparagraphs, paragraphs, subsections, provisions or applications of the act which can be given effect without the invalid subparagraph, paragraph, subsection, provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this act are declared to be severable.
1976, DECEMBER 2, P.L.1230, NO.272
§ 2. Severability.
The provisions of this act shall not affect any act done, liability incurred or right accrued or vested, or affect any suit or prosecution pending or to be instituted to enforce any right or penalty or punish any offense under the authority of any act or part thereof repealed in this act.
Explanatory Note. Act 272 amended section 3929 of Title 18.
1978, NOVEMBER 26, P.L.1316, NO.319
Explanatory Note. The provisions of Act 319 of 1978 which were formerly contained in this appendix are now contained in the appendix to Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure).
1982, JUNE 18, P.L.537, NO.154
§ 2. Right of action for injunction, damages or other relief.
(a) General rule.--Any person who incurs injury to his person or damage or loss to his property as a result of conduct described in 18 Pa.C.S. § 2710 (relating to ethnic intimidation) or 18 Pa.C.S. § 3307 (relating to institutional vandalism) shall have a right of action against the actor for injunction, damages or other appropriate civil or equitable relief. In any such action the issue of whether the defendant engaged in the conduct alleged shall be determined according to the burden of proof used in other civil actions for similar relief.
(b) Damages and expenses recoverable.--The plaintiff in an action under this section may recover:
(1) General and special damages, including damages for emotional distress.
(2) Punitive damages.
(3) Reasonable attorneys fees and costs.
1989, NOVEMBER 17, P.L.592, NO.64
§ 6. Severability.
The provisions of this act are severable. If any word, phrase or provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect any other word, phrase or provision or application of this act which can be given effect without the invalid word, phrase, provision or application.
Explanatory Note. Act 64 added or amended the defs. of "fertilization," "gestational age," "pregnancy" and "unborn child" in section 3203 and added or amended sections 3204(c) and (d), 3205(a) and (c), 3206(f)(1), 3208(a), 3208.1, 3209, 3210, 3211, 3212(b), 3214(a), 3215(b), 3216, 3217, 3218(a), 3220 and 4302 of Title 18.
§ 7. Publication of forms and materials.
The Department of Health shall create the forms required by 18 Pa.C.S. §§ 3209(d) and 3214(a) within 30 days after the effective date of this act and shall cause to be published, within 60 days after the effective date of this act, the printed materials described in 18 Pa.C.S. § 3208(a).
§ 8. Applicability of reporting and distribution requirements.
No provision of this act requiring the reporting of information on forms published by the Department of Health, or requiring the distribution of printed materials published by the Department of Health pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S. § 3208, shall be applicable until ten days after the requisite forms are first created and printed materials are first published by the Department of Health or until the effective date of this act, whichever is later.
§ 9. Effective date.
This act shall take effect as follows:
(1) The provisions of 18 Pa.C.S. §§ 3209(d) and 3214(a) requiring the Department of Health to create forms and of 18 Pa.C.S. § 3208(a) requiring the department to publish certain information shall take effect immediately.
(2) The remainder of this act shall take effect in 60 days.
1994, APRIL 21, P.L.130, NO.16
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) For the health, safety and welfare of the residents of this Commonwealth, the laws designed to deter the defacement of public and private property through the use of aerosol spray-paint cans, broad-tipped indelible markers and other marking devices should be strengthened.
(2) Where appropriate, the court should require those who commit acts of defacement to restore the damaged property to its original condition.
Explanatory Note. Act 16 amended section 3307 of Title 18.
1994, APRIL 21, P.L.131, NO.17
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) For the health, safety and welfare of the residents of this Commonwealth, the laws designed to deter the defacement of public and private property through the use of aerosol spray-paint cans, broad-tipped indelible markers and other marking devices should be strengthened.
(2) Where appropriate, the court should require those who commit acts of defacement to restore the damaged property to its original condition.
Explanatory Note. Act 17 amended section 3304 of Title 18 and added section 9720 of Title 42.
1994, DECEMBER 12, P.L.1248, NO.148
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
The youth of Pennsylvania are the greatest resource of this Commonwealth and the Commonwealth finds that the protection of minors from the possible abuse of alcohol is of great importance.
The Commonwealth seeks to prevent minors from using alcoholic products. Nonalcoholic beer, wine and liquor contain amounts of alcohol and often taste, look and smell like legitimate alcoholic products. Therefore, the Commonwealth has a purpose in the restriction of sales of these products to minors.
Nonalcoholic beverages are made for those who want to enjoy the taste of alcohol without the effects of alcohol and should never be intended to introduce the youth of this Commonwealth to drinking beer, wine or liquor.
Explanatory Note. Act 148 amended or added sections 5781 and 6310.7 of Title 18.
1995, JUNE 13, 1ST SP.SESS., P.L.1024, NO.17
Preamble
The General Assembly hereby declares that the purpose of this act is to provide support to law enforcement in the area of crime prevention and control, that it is not the purpose of this act to place any undue or unnecessary restrictions or burdens on law-abiding citizens with respect to the acquisition, possession, transfer, transportation or use of firearms, rifles or shotguns for personal protection, hunting, target shooting, employment or any other lawful activity, and that this act is not intended to discourage or restrict the private ownership and use of firearms by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes or to provide for the imposition by rules or regulations of any procedures or requirements other than those necessary to implement and effectuate the provisions of this act. The General Assembly hereby recognizes and declares its support of the fundamental constitutional right of Commonwealth citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and this Commonwealth.
Explanatory Note. Act 17 amended, added or repealed sections 913, 6101, 6102, 6103, 6104, 6105, 6106.1, 6107, 6109, 6110, 6110.1, 6111, 6111.1, 6111.2, 6111.3, 6111.4, 6111.5, 6112, 6113, 6114, 6115, 6116, 6117, 6118 and 6125 of Title 18 and sections 6308 and 9712 of Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure).
1995, OCTOBER 11, 1ST SP.SESS., P.L.1058, NO.21
§ 5. Projected increases in State prison population.
Within 180 days of the effective date of this act, the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing shall, for the purpose of advising the General Assembly concerning future prison construction expenditures, publish projected increases in the State prison population resulting from implementation of this act.
Explanatory Note. Act 21 amended section 1103 of Title 18 and sections 6335, 9712, 9713 and 9714 of Title 42.
1997, MAY 9, P.L.142, NO.8
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) That look-alike or act-alike drugs are those drugs which are regularly marketed as stimulants or weight-loss aids and in their appearance look and in their effect act upon the body like illegal stimulants containing amphetamines.
(2) That look-alike or act-alike drugs are composed of various forms of ephedrine.
(3) That these look-alike or act-alike drugs are readily available to the public, regardless of age.
(4) That many children employ the use of look-alike or act-alike drugs as a starter drug prior to the use of illegal controlled substances.
Explanatory Note. Act 8 amended or added sections 6314 and 6316 of Title 18.
2000, JUNE 13, P.L.130, NO.25
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) The Internet is an increasingly valuable medium for communication and the dissemination and collection of information.
(2) The children of this Commonwealth utilize the Internet for entertainment, education and commerce.
(3) Many children in this Commonwealth have access to electronic mail accounts through their parents' accounts, shared accounts or their own personal accounts.
(4) Increasingly advertisers use the Internet to market explicit sexual materials to millions of users of the Internet.
(5) One of the frequently used vehicles for the marketing of explicit sexual materials via the Internet is unsolicited electronic mail messages.
(6) These unsolicited explicit sexual advertisements are sent to computers in Commonwealth households allowing children to view or have access to pornographic materials.
(7) Although there are an increasing number of Internet filtering software titles that parents can use to block access to obscene World Wide Web sites, these filtering software titles are ineffective against explicit sexual material that is sent via electronic mail.
(8) There is no universal method of identifying electronic mail messages that market explicit sexual materials.
(9) Despite the best efforts of parents to protect their children from explicit sexual material via electronic mail messages, they are unable to do so because there is no method by which they can separate and filter out inappropriate messages from appropriate messages.
(10) The Commonwealth has a compelling interest in protecting children from explicit sexual material.
(11) In doing so, government must enact a narrowly tailored remedy to avoid interfering with the growth or accessibility of this important medium and with the rights of adult users of the Internet under the first amendment to the Constitution of the United States and section 7 of Article I of the Constitution of Pennsylvania.
(12) This act empowers parents to decide what type of messages are inappropriate for their children and effectively block those messages from their children's electronic mail accounts.
(13) This act does not restrict or prevent the sending of unsolicited explicit sexual electronic advertisements to any and all prospective recipients as long as an appropriate warning accompanies such advertisements.
Explanatory Note. Act 25 amended section 5903 of Title 18.
2000, DECEMBER 20, P.L.721, NO.98
Preamble
It is the intent of the General Assembly to protect our most vulnerable and precious citizens, the Commonwealth's children, from the ravages of sexual abuse. Because sexual crimes committed against children are among the most heinous imaginable, the General Assembly declares it to be in the public interest to enact this act.
Explanatory Note. Act 98 amended sections 2902, 2903 and 5903 of Title 18 and added section 9718.1 of Title 42.
2002, DECEMBER 9, P.L.1759, NO.218
§ 9. References to section 2709.
(1) Except as otherwise provided for in paragraph (2), any reference in any act or part of an act to 18 Pa.C.S. § 2709 without specification as to subsection (a) or (b) of that section shall be deemed to include a reference to 18 Pa.C.S. § 2709.1 as if fully set forth in that act or part of that act.
(2) Any reference in any act or part of an act to 18 Pa.C.S. § 2709(b) shall be deemed a reference to 18 Pa.C.S. § 2709.1 as if fully set forth in that act or part of that act.
Explanatory Note. Act 218 amended, added or repealed sections 2709, 2709.1, 2710, 2711, 4954, 4955, 5504, 5708 and 6105 of Title 18.
§ 10. References to section 5504.
(1) Except as otherwise provided for in paragraph (2) or (3), any reference in any act or part of an act to 18 Pa.C.S. § 5504 without specification as to subsection (a) or (a.1) of that section shall be deemed a reference to 18 Pa.C.S. §§ 2709(a)(4), (5), (6) and (7) and 2709.1 as if fully set forth in that act or part of that act.
(2) Any reference in any act or part of an act to 18 Pa.C.S. § 5504(a) shall be deemed a reference to 18 Pa.C.S. § 2709(a)(4), (5), (6) and (7) as if fully set forth in that act or part of that act.
(3) Any reference in any act or part of an act to 18 Pa.C.S. § 5504(a.1) shall be deemed a reference to 18 Pa.C.S. § 2709.1 as if fully set forth in that act or part of that act.
2003, SEPTEMBER 30, P.L.120, NO.24
§ 21. Applicability.
The following shall apply:
* * *
(5) The following apply to offenses committed before February 1, 2004:
(i) Except as set forth in subparagraph (ii) or (iii), this act shall not affect an offense committed before February 1, 2004, or any criminal, civil and administrative penalty assessed as a result of that offense.
(ii) Subparagraph (i) does not apply if a provision added or amended by this act specifies application to an offense committed before February 1, 2004, or to any criminal, civil or administrative penalty assessed as a result of that offense.
(iii) Subparagraph (i) does not apply to the following provisions:
(A) The amendment of 42 Pa.C.S. § 7003(5) in section 3 of this act.
(B) The amendment of 75 Pa.C.S. § 1516(c) and (d).
(C) The amendment of 75 Pa.C.S. § 1534(b).
(D) The amendment of 75 Pa.C.S. § 1547(d) in section 9.1 of this act.
(E) The amendment of 75 Pa.C.S. § 3731(a)(4)(i) and (a.1)(1)(i) in section 13 of this act.
Explanatory Note. Act 24 amended or repealed sections 6105, 7508.1, 7513 and 7514 of Title 18.
2004, NOVEMBER 30, P.L.1618, NO.207
§ 28. Applicability.
This act shall apply as follows:
(1) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (2), any and all references in any other law to a "district justice" or "justice of the peace" shall be deemed to be references to a magisterial district judge.
(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to the provisions of 71 Pa.C.S.
Explanatory Note. Act 207 amended sections 103, 913, 1106, 2702, 3929, 3929.1, 4953.1, 4955, 6308, 6711 and 7311 of Title 18.
§ 29. Construction of law.
Nothing in this act shall be construed or deemed to provide magisterial district judges with retirement benefits or rights that are different from those available to district justices or justices of the peace immediately prior to the effective date of this act. Nothing in this act shall be construed or deemed to provide senior magisterial district judges with retirement benefits or rights that are different from those available to senior district justices immediately prior to the effective date of this act.
2005, NOVEMBER 10, P.L.335, NO.66
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) The provisions of 23 Pa.C.S. Ch. 61 (relating to protection from abuse) are necessary and proper in that they further the Commonwealth's compelling State interest to protect victims of domestic violence from abuse.
(2) The Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and section 21 of Article I of the Constitution of Pennsylvania recognize a fundamental right to keep and bear arms.
(3) The limitation of firearm rights for the duration of a protection from abuse order as authorized by 23 Pa.C.S. Ch. 61 is a reasonable regulation, a valid exercise of the police power of the Commonwealth and furthers the compelling State interest to protect victims from abuse.
(4) As provided in 23 Pa.C.S. Ch. 61, a court may impose limitations on firearm rights prohibiting someone who has engaged in domestic violence from possessing firearms when the court deems it appropriate to do so in order to protect a victim.
Explanatory Note. Act 66 amended or added sections 6102, 6105, 6106, 6109 and 6115 of Title 18 and sections 6102, 6103, 6104, 6105, 6106, 6107, 6108, 6108.1, 6108.2, 6108.3, 6108.4, 6108.5, 6110, 6113, 6113.1, 6114, 6117, 6119, 6120, 6121 and 6122 of Title 23.
§ 15. Effective date.
This act shall take effect as follows:
(1) The addition or amendment of 18 Pa.C.S. § 6109(e)(3) introductory paragraph, (i), (ii), (v) and (vi) shall take effect in 90 days.
(2) The addition or amendment of 18 Pa.C.S. § 6109(e)(3)(iii), (iv) and (4) shall take effect upon publication of the notice under 18 Pa.C.S. § 6109(h)(2) or five years and 60 days, whichever is first.
(3) This section shall take effect immediately.
(4) The remainder of this act shall take effect in 180 days.
2006, MAY 11, P.L.155, NO.36
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) Driving under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance is a crime with thousands of victims in this Commonwealth.
(2) Evidence exists that victim impact panels are effective in reducing offender recidivism and restoring balance to victims' lives in driving under the influence cases.
(3) The purpose of this act is to recognize the value of victim impact panels at reducing offender recidivism and addressing victims' issues, to encourage counties to implement the panels and to establish a coordinating committee to provide standardized guidance for the panels.
Explanatory Note. Act 36 amended section 7508.1 of Title 18 and sections 3802 and 3804 of Title 75.
2006, NOVEMBER 29, P.L.1567, NO.178
Preamble
The General Assembly hereby declares its intention to enact versions of Jessica's Law and Megan's Law in this Commonwealth.
Explanatory Note. Act 178 amended or added section 3130, Subchapter C of Chapter 31 and sections 4915 and 6138 of Title 18 and sections 9718, 9718.2, 9718.3, 9795.1, 9795.2, 9798.3 and 9799.2 of Title 42.
2011, JUNE 28, P.L.48, NO.10
Preamble
The General Assembly finds that:
(1) It is proper for law-abiding people to protect themselves, their families and others from intruders and attackers without fear of prosecution or civil action for acting in defense of themselves and others.
(2) The Castle Doctrine is a common law doctrine of ancient origins which declares that a home is a person's castle.
(3) Section 21 of Article I of the Constitution of Pennsylvania guarantees that the "right of the citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the State shall not be questioned."
(4) Persons residing in or visiting this Commonwealth have a right to expect to remain unmolested within their homes or vehicles.
(5) No person should be required to surrender his or her personal safety to a criminal, nor should a person be required to needlessly retreat in the face of intrusion or attack outside the person's home or vehicle.
Explanatory Note. Act 10 amended or added sections 501, 505, 506, 3903, 6102 and 6109 of Title 18 and section 8340.2 of Title 42.
2014, JULY 2, P.L.945, NO.105
§ 9. Application of law.
Applicability is as follows:
(1) The addition of 18 Pa.C.S. Ch. 30 shall apply to offenses committed on or after the effective date of this section.
(2) Section 2 (repeal of 18 Pa.C.S. §§ 3001, 3002, 3003 and 3004) of this act shall not affect the validity of a prosecution initiated under the repealed sections.
Explanatory Note. Act 105 amended, added or repealed section 911, Chapter 30 and section 5708 of Title 18 and sections 4415, 4436, 5552, 5945.3, 9720.2, 9738 and 9799.14 of Title 42.
2015, NOVEMBER 4, P.L.224, NO.59
Preamble
The General Assembly finds and declares that it is the legislative intent in enacting this act:
to deter and prohibit an individual who is involved with matters relating to labor relations from engaging in harassment, stalking and threats to use weapons of mass destruction, as set forth in this act; and
not to modify or repeal an otherwise legal right that an individual who is involved with matters relating to labor relations may otherwise have.
Explanatory Note. Act 59 amended sections 2709, 2709.1 and 2715 of Title 18.
Last modified: October 8, 2016