What charges can follow a domestic violence arrest in Pennsylvania?

Last updated October 26, 2026.

Pennsylvania has no single crime called "domestic violence." The charges come from the Crimes Code, for example simple assault, aggravated assault, strangulation, terroristic threats, harassment and stalking (18 Pa.C.S. 2701, 2702, 2718, 2706, 2709 and 2709.1). The family or household relationship changes the case in three ways: police may arrest without a warrant for certain offenses they did not see, the person must go before a judge instead of being released at the station, and strangulation becomes a felony (18 Pa.C.S. 2711 and 2718(d)).

A Protection From Abuse order, if one is filed, runs as a separate civil case alongside the charges. For our overall approach to criminal cases, see our criminal defense page.

What makes a case "domestic" under Pennsylvania law?

The key phrase is "family or household members," defined in the Protection From Abuse Act as spouses and former spouses, people who live or lived as spouses, parents and children, other relatives by blood or marriage, current or former sexual or intimate partners, and people who share biological parenthood (23 Pa.C.S. 6102). The domestic violence arrest statute and the strangulation statute both borrow that definition (18 Pa.C.S. 2711(a); 2718(d)(2)(i)), and the stalking statute uses the same list (2709.1(f)).

So a fight between roommates who are not partners or relatives is charged and handled like any other assault, while the same conduct between former partners brings the domestic rules into play. The assault charges themselves are described on our assault defense page.

Which charges can be filed, and how are they graded?

The maximum sentence for each grade is in our Pennsylvania criminal penalties chart. Two details in the statutes surprise people. Strangulation does not require any physical injury, and the lack of injury is not a defense (2718(b)). And a terroristic threat can be communicated "directly or indirectly," in person, in writing or electronically, including by phone or email (2706(a) and (e)).

What happens after a domestic violence arrest, step by step?

1. The arrest. For listed offenses, including simple assault, certain aggravated assaults, recklessly endangering another person, terroristic threats, stalking and strangulation against a family or household member, police may arrest without a warrant on probable cause even if the offense did not happen in front of them. They must first see recent physical injury to the alleged victim or other corroborating evidence (2711(a)).
2. Weapons. The officer must seize all weapons used in the alleged offense (2711(b)). Questions about guns under a PFA are covered in whether you must give up firearms when a PFA is entered.
3. No station release. The officer may not release the person from custody instead of taking them to a judge; a preliminary arraignment must follow without unnecessary delay (2711(c)(1)).
4. Bail. The judge must consider whether the person poses a threat of danger to the alleged victim, and may use a pretrial risk assessment tool, though not as the only basis (2711(c)(2) and (c.1)). How release types work is explained in how bail works in Pennsylvania.
5. The preliminary hearing. The case goes to the district court for the place of the incident, listed on our page about Delaware County's district courts.
6. The Court of Common Pleas. Charges held for court move to formal arraignment and pretrial steps in Media, as traced in what happens after an arrest in Delaware County.

Can bail conditions keep me out of my home?

Yes. If the judge finds a threat of danger to the alleged victim, the law requires a bail condition that the defendant stay out of the victim's residence or household and place of employment and commit no further criminal conduct against the victim (2711(c)(2)). That condition ends at the preliminary hearing, or when a court enters or denies a PFA order, whichever comes first. Breaking it can bring revocation of release, forfeiture of bail, or a bench warrant, and the defendant gets a hearing on it.

A bench warrant on a domestic case follows the same Rule 150 hearing process as any other, explained in what happens with a bench warrant in Delaware County. Because the statutory stay-away condition can end at the preliminary hearing, what happens next often depends on whether a PFA is entered and on any new bail conditions the court sets.

How is the criminal case different from a PFA?

They are two cases with different parties and different rules, even when they come from the same night.

• Who brings it. The criminal case is prosecuted by the Commonwealth through the District Attorney. A PFA is a civil petition filed by the person seeking protection, who must prove abuse by a preponderance of the evidence (23 Pa.C.S. 6107(a)); the defendant's side of that hearing is in what happens at a PFA final hearing in Delaware County.
• What counts as abuse. The PFA definition of abuse includes a course of conduct that causes reasonable fear, but the Act says that part of the definition does not apply to criminal prosecutions under Title 18 (23 Pa.C.S. 6102). Criminal charges must fit the Crimes Code.
• Violations. Violating a PFA brings a warrantless arrest on probable cause for its core terms (6113(a)) and an indirect criminal contempt case, and a contempt hearing does not prevent separate criminal charges for the same conduct (6113(f)); see what happens if you are accused of violating a PFA.
• Children. Temporary custody can be part of a PFA (6108(a)(4)), and the notice of the hearing must warn that the order may be considered in later custody cases (6107(a)); see how a PFA affects custody.

Anything said at the PFA hearing can matter in the criminal case, so the two should be planned together. How a protection order is obtained in the first place is described on our protection from abuse page.

Is ARD or diversion possible?

It depends on the county and the charge. Delaware County's District Attorney says ARD eligibility is decided case by case and that violent crimes, among other offenses, "will typically make a defendant ineligible"; its Misdemeanor Diversion Program is for "low-level, non-violent misdemeanor offenses." Its program page lists no separate domestic violence track. The county's options are compared in diversion programs for non-DUI charges in Delaware County.

Chester County's District Attorney lists a Domestic Violence ARD program, with its own application and cost sheet, among its diversionary programs; the rest of that county's process is in criminal, DUI and family cases in Chester County.

What changes the answer?

• The relationship. Only family or household members, as defined in 6102, trigger 2711 arrests and the felony grade for strangulation.
• The injury. Bodily injury points to simple assault; serious bodily injury, or an attempt to cause it, points to aggravated assault (2701; 2702(a)(1)).
• A weapon or a child. A deadly weapon, a child under 6, or a child under 12 raises the grade (2701(b)(2); 2702(a)(4) and (8)).
• An existing PFA. Strangulation becomes a first-degree felony when an active PFA covers the victim (2718(d)(3)(i)), and earlier PFA violations raise harassment and stalking grades (2709(c)(3); 2709.1(c)(2)).
• Words or actions. Threatening or repeated messages are charged as harassment by communication or terroristic threats, which are graded differently from physical contact (2709(c); 2706(d)).
• A sexual offense allegation. Sexual offenses fall under separate statutes with their own consequences; see our sex crime defense page.

For example: an argument that ends in a felony charge

Here is a hypothetical. Neighbors in Ridley Township call police about shouting next door. The officer arrives after the argument is over, sees red marks on a woman's neck, and hears her say her husband grabbed her throat. Because the officer saw a recent injury and the two are spouses, he arrests the husband without a warrant even though he did not see the incident. The charges are strangulation, a second-degree felony because of the marriage, simple assault and harassment.

The husband is not released at the station. At the preliminary arraignment the judge finds a threat of danger and sets a condition that he stay out of the home and away from his wife's workplace until the preliminary hearing or a PFA decision. Two days later she files for a PFA. He now has a criminal case at the district court and a civil PFA hearing in Media, and his lawyer plans both together. This example is only an illustration; every case depends on its own facts.

What mistakes do people make after a domestic violence arrest?

• Going home after release. A stay-away condition is set by the court, so follow it even if the other person invites you back.
• Contacting the alleged victim to apologize or explain. Contact can break a bail condition or a PFA and add a new charge.
• Assuming the case ends if the other person wants it to. The Commonwealth brings the charges; whether they can be withdrawn is a separate question, touched on in what happens at a preliminary hearing.
• Talking to police about the facts. Statements made after the arrest can be used in both cases.
• Treating the PFA hearing as unrelated. Testimony there can affect the criminal case.
• Ignoring messages and texts. They can support harassment, stalking or threats charges, and they can also help a defense; keep them.

What should I do this week?

1. Read the complaint and write down each statute number charged.
2. Read the bail order and follow every condition, especially any stay-away term.
3. Note the preliminary hearing date and the district court number.
4. Save texts, call logs, photos and names of witnesses, without contacting the other person.
5. If a PFA has been filed, note that hearing date too.
6. Talk with a defense lawyer before either hearing; our first-week checklist after a criminal charge lists the papers to bring.

Frequently asked questions

Is "domestic violence" a charge in Pennsylvania?

No. The charges are ordinary Crimes Code offenses, such as simple assault or harassment. The relationship matters for arrest, bail and some grades, such as strangulation.

Can police arrest me if they did not see anything?

For the offenses listed in 2711(a), yes, on probable cause, but only after seeing recent physical injury or other corroborating evidence.

How long does the stay-away bail condition last?

The condition required by 2711(c)(2) ends at the preliminary hearing or when a PFA is entered or denied, whichever comes first. A judge can still set other conditions.

Is strangulation always a felony?

No. It is a second-degree misdemeanor in general, but a second-degree felony against a family or household member and a first-degree felony when an active PFA covers the victim (2718(d)).

Is harassment a criminal record?

The physical-contact form is a summary offense, while the communication forms are third-degree misdemeanors (2709(c)). Both are convictions; what a summary conviction means for your record is in what a summary offense is.

Call Giribaldi Law at (610) 891-8303 or contact us online for a free consultation about domestic violence charges.