We use a holistic approach to champion our clients’ individual goals and address the root causes of involvement in the legal system. Here are some resources helpful to clients experiencing overlapping issues.
Community Resources | Re-Entry Resources | Family Resources
Community Resources
Addiction & Recovery Services
Delaware County Department of Human Services Drug and Alcohol Division
LETI program
MVP Recovery
PA Department of Drug and Alcohol Treatment Programs 62-HELP (4357)
AA Meeting Locator
NA Meeting Locator
Keystone Center Detox, Chester
Merakey, Sharon Hill (610) 537-1765
Mirmont Treatment
Mental Health Services
Delaware County Health Department Mental Health Services
Delaware County Human Services
Department of Behavioral Health
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline – Dial 988 from any phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for free and confidential support
Pennsylvania’s Mental Health Guide
Veteran's Resources
MakeTheConnection.net
Veterans Affairs
Housing
Delaware County Guide to Homeless Services
Delaware County Housing and Support Services
Access to Emergency Shelters in Delaware County
Employment and Educational Opportunities
PA Delco Career Link
EDSI
Delaware County Literacy Council
Prepared Meals and Food Resources
Delaware County Interfaith Food Assistance Network PDF – coordinated by Family and Community Service of Delaware County
Bernadine Center
Chester Eastside Ministries
First United Methodist Food Bank
Landsdowne Presbyterian Church/Interfaith Food Cupboard
Pardons + Expungement
https://www.pa.gov/guides/mj-pardon/
PA CareerLink sites have computer resource rooms that are available for community members to use when trying to take advantage of the Governor’s Quick Pardon for marijuana related convictions. https://www.governor.pa.gov/newsroom/gov-wolf-lt-gov-fetterman-announce-effort-to-quickly-pardon-thousands-of-pennsylvanians-from-marijuana-related-convictions/
Legal Aide of Southeastern Pennsylvania helps with expungements and clearing criminal records.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health Resource Guides
Delaware County
Montgomery County
Bucks County
Chester County
Family Resources
| Find an Incarcerated Individual | |
|---|---|
 | Look up your family member in Delaware County's database. |
| Bail | |
|---|---|
 | Information about paying bail in Delaware County |
| Fund a Commissary | |
|---|---|
 | Add funds to a commissary account. All the options are available at the link. |
Re-Entry Resources
Delaware County Reentry Coalition
Close to ten thousand people are committed to the Delaware County adult correctional facility each year. The vast majority of these individuals will return to their communities when released. Upon return to community, they will find themselves facing the same challenges experienced prior to incarceration. For too many, this includes a mix of poverty, racism, homelessness and/or unstable housing, inadequate education, geographic disparity, lack of transportation, debt, and disabilities. After incarceration they will encounter new, additional hurdles—loss of employment, loss of housing and community capital, criminal records, court debt, trauma, and readjustment.
In 2020, the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency funded an effort to establish a county-wide Reentry Coalition to address the needs of our community members who are returning after incarceration. The mission of the Delaware County Reentry Coalition is to enhance our community by undertaking a broad approach to create and strengthen support networks that encourage dignity, address basic needs, and reset positive self-images for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals.
Prison Visitation and Bail Information
George W. Hill Prison
Visit the prison
Bail in Delaware County
State Prisons/Department of Corrections/visitation
Delaware County Jail Oversight Board
Legal Resources
Information and Data about Pennsylvania’s Sentencing Laws
Overview of the Pennsylvania Court System
Delaware County Courts
Links to published guides:*
Family Guide to Juvenile Justice
Fines, Costs, Restitution research and self-help guides by the ACLU of PA
Institutional Law Project PA resource directory for incarcerated persons and others
Inst. Law Project 2013 Prisoner’ s Rights Handbook
Jailhouse Lawyer’s Handbook 2021
*Delco Defender did not write and cannot vouch for the accuracy/currency of these guides. All legal and strategic questions regarding your criminal case should be directed to your attorney.
Group Title
Frequently Asked Questions
Call our office at (610) 891-4100. Our staff will try to help you. If you are not yet assigned an attorney they will let you know.
Our administrative staff or your assigned attorney can help you if you call our office at (610) 891-4100. You can also look up your case by the docket number on Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System: https://ujsportal.pacourts.us/CaseSearch
Individuals with no or little history of criminal conviction who are accused of minor crimes may be eligible to participate in an Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) Program that is run by the District Attorney’s office. This program requires participants to accomplish certain conditions, such as community service or completion of classes, over a period of time. If a person is accepted to the program and completes the required conditions without picking up any new charges they can earn dismissal of their charges and possible expungement. For more information on Delaware County’s ARD program follow this link: https://delcoda.com/information/ard-program/
You may be directed by the Court to perform community service as part of a sentence or diversionary program. Generally, community service may be performed with any established non-profit where your service can be verified by that organization. We recommend speaking with your probation officer or attorney before beginning the community service to make sure that they will approve the organization you are working with – free work for private businesses will not be approved. If you are performing community service as part of the ARD program run by the District Attorney’s office, they will accept community service at verified non-profit organizations (such as a church or helping organization) or at one of their pre-approved organizations. The District Attorney’s community service approval form can be found here: https://delcoda.com/information/ard-program/
