I read your article about police officers at preliminary hearings acting as attorneys for the commonwealth. I thought the Rules of Criminal Procedure allowed that?
Samuel C. Stretton.
Obviously, no one is perfect and the writer of these columns is the first to admit that he, at times, makes mistakes. But the question is correct. Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 542(b) states as follows: “When no attorney appears on behalf of the commonwealth at a preliminary hearing, the affiant may be permitted to ask questions of any witness who is testifying.”
