(a) General rule.--An order of disposition or other adjudication in a proceeding under this chapter is not a conviction of crime and does not impose any civil disability ordinarily resulting from a conviction or operate to disqualify the child in any civil service application or appointment. (b) Effect in subsequent judicial matters.--The disposition of a child under this chapter may only be used against him: (1) in dispositional proceedings after conviction for the purposes of a presentence investigation and report if the child was adjudicated delinquent; (2) in a subsequent juvenile hearing, whether before or after reaching majority; (3) if relevant, where he has put his reputation or character in issue in a civil matter; or (4) in a criminal proceeding, if the child was adjudicated delinquent for an offense, the evidence of which would be admissible if committed by an adult. (May 12, 1995, 1st Sp.Sess., P.L.1006, No.13, eff. 60 days)
Pennsylvania Legal Code