(A) An order or notice of the date, not later than thirty (30) days after the indictment is returned, except for extraordinary cause, upon which the Defendant will be arraigned in Circuit Court, will be issued and sent by the Clerk to counsel of record for the Defendant. It will be defense counsel's responsibility to notify his or her client of the arraignment date and to inform the Defendant that he or she must attend, with counsel, on the arraignment date. If the Defendant fails to appear on the scheduled arraignment date, a bench warrant will be issued and the bond or other pre-trial release will be revoked, subject to review at a subsequent hearing on bail.

(B) At the arraignment, the Defendant shall be served with a copy of the indictment and, unless waived, formally arraigned thereon. If there are any issues pertaining to pre-trial release or bail, those matters will be discussed and appropriate action taken.

(C) No later than twenty (20) days after the arraignment, counsel for the Commonwealth and counsel for the Defendant shall confer. Plea negotiations will be discussed. Upon request, counsel for the Commonwealth shall:

(D) Any duty of disclosure and discovery set forth in this order is a continuing one and the attorney for the Commonwealth shall promptly produce any additional information gained by the Commonwealth.

(E) The Court will set a pre-trial conference date not less than sixty (60) days after the indictment is returned. Counsel shall have their schedules available at the arraignment so that conflicts may be avoided in setting the pre-trial conference date.

(F) Counsel for the Commonwealth and counsel for the Defendant shall meet and confer no less than fifteen (15) days prior to the pre-trial conference for the purpose of discussing matters that will be handled at the pre-trial conference. At the pre-trial conference, the parties shall be prepared to take up the following matters:

(G) At the pre-trial conference, the Court will set the case for trial on a date certain. Counsel are to come with their schedules so that conflicts may be avoided. Once set for trial, cases will not be continued except for good cause shown in extraordinary circumstances. Counsel shall bring their schedules to the pre-trial conference so that conflicts may be avoided in setting dates for evidentiary hearings and hearings on motions.

(H) Unless relieved by Order of the Court, any attorney who has entered an appearance for the Defendant will be present and will represent the Defendant at trial. Motions for substitution of counsel will not be granted unless made sufficiently in advance of trial to permit successor counsel to be prepared and ready for trial on the date set at the pre-trial conference.

(I) All discovery will be completed no later than thirty (30) days before trial. In the event there are any disputes concerning discovery, motions relating thereto will be filed no later than twenty-five (25) days before trial and, if necessary, the Court will schedule hearings on those motions as expeditiously as practicable.

(J) Reciprocal Discovery. The Defendant will be bound by all rules of discovery that are binding on the Commonwealth. The Defendant shall provide this discovery in the same time and manner as the Commonwealth as set forth in these Rules.

(K) Open File Policy. The Commonwealth shall provide discovery under the open file policy. Under the open file policy the Commonwealth will not be required to answer formal discovery requests filed by the Defendant including, but not limited to, Bill of Particulars, Request for Production of Documents and Request for Grand Jury Proceedings. If the Defendant does not wish to proceed under the open file policy, then the Commonwealth will answer all discovery motions as ordered by the Court; the Commonwealth will not have to provide open file discovery to any Defendant who proceeds under the formal discovery process, but will only provide such discovery as ordered by the Court.

(L) Continuances. No continuances will be granted except for exceptional and good cause shown. The following, however, will not be grounds for continuing any trial:

(A) The Court will issue a warrant for the Defendant's arrest and schedule an arraignment date within thirty (30) days to permit the Commonwealth time to serve the warrant. When the warrant is served, the Defendant will be arraigned no later than at the next regular motion hour. Thereafter, the case will proceed as specified in Part A of this Rule.

(B) If the warrant has not been served within thirty (30) days, the Clerk will place the matter on the Court's docket at the next regular motion hour for review. If, at that time, the attorney for the Commonwealth reports that it is likely that service will be effected upon the Defendant if additional time is allowed, the Court will grant an additional continuance of up to thirty (30) additional days. A longer period may be granted within the discretion of the Court in exceptional circumstances. If, within the period the matter has been continued, the Defendant has been served, he or she will be arraigned no later than the next regular motion hour and, thereafter, the case will proceed as prescribed in Section A of this Rule.

(C) If, within the period(s) of the continuances provided for in Section B(2) of this Rule, the Defendant is not served, the Defendant will be declared a Fugitive and the case will be removed from the Court's docket. In that event, the Clerk will so notify the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) by mailing the appropriate form, that the case has been removed from the Court s active docket. If, thereafter, the Defendant is apprehended, the matter will be re-docketed, the Defendant will be arraigned no later than the next regular motion hour, and the case will proceed as prescribed in Section 1(A) of this Rule.