Pennsylvania

Judge’s unusual instruction could upend at least a dozen murder convictions

At least a dozen Pennsylvania murder convictions are being challenged because of an unusual jury instruction by a judge who has since resigned from the bench. The reasonable-doubt instruction by Judge Renee Cardwell Hughes led federal judges to order new trials for two defendants, although other judges have upheld the…

Jan 3, 2019 12:00 PM CST

Judge retires after appeals court removes her from sex offender cases, cites animus toward PD office

A Pennsylvania judge has announced her retirement after a state appeals court removed her from two sex offender cases and said she had shown “personal animus” toward the public defender’s office. Judge Donna Jo McDaniel, 72, of Allegheny County will retire at the end of January after 33 years on…

Dec 14, 2018 10:57 AM CST

Court removes judge from child rape case, citing opinion sarcasm and ‘personal animus’

A Pennsylvania appeals court has removed a judge from the resentencing of a convicted child rapist, citing the judge’s “demonstrated bias and personal animus” toward the defendant’s lawyer and the public defender’s office. A three-judge panel of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania ordered the recusal of Judge Donna Jo McDaniel…

Nov 29, 2018 12:12 PM CST

Former Pennsylvania attorney general goes to jail after state high court turns down appeal

Updated: Former Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane reported to jail Thursday to begin serving a sentence of up to 23 months for perjury and obstruction of the law. Judge Wendy Demchick-Alloy of Montgomery County revoked Kane’s bail on Tuesday, citing the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s refusal to hear Kane’s appeal on…

Nov 28, 2018 8:15 AM CST

Cops in this Pennsylvania county claim sex workers with cellphones possess ‘instruments of crime’

Health Law

Oct 31, 2018 4:38 PM CDT

Former Penn State general counsel cleared of ethics violations in Sandusky investigation

An ethics panel has found that the former general counsel of Penn State did not violate any ethics rules in her representation of Penn State officials during the investigation into child molestation complaints against assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The disciplinary board panel recommended dismissal of all ethics charges against…

Oct 31, 2018 9:54 AM CDT

Are free speech and academic freedom under assault at colleges and universities?

Many see the case of Teresa Buchanan at Louisiana State University as emblematic of the precarious state of academic freedom for college and university professors. Others view the case as an example of the perils of applying a categorical rule to limit professorial speech.

Oct 1, 2018 1:40 AM CDT

Gunman killed after shooting 4 at magisterial district judge’s office

A man charged in connection with a domestic dispute shot four people, including a police officer, on Wednesday at a magisterial district judge’s office in western Pennsylvania. Patrick S. Dowdell, the gunman, was at the building for a preliminary hearing on charges that included strangulation and terroristic threats, the New…

Sep 20, 2018 9:37 AM CDT

Lawyer is suspended for placing tracking and recording devices in ex-girlfriend’s car

A Pennsylvania lawyer has been suspended for placing GPS tracking and recording devices in the car of his former girlfriend to discover who she was dating. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court suspended Michael Casale Jr., 66, for five years, but the final four years of his suspension are stayed if Casale…

Sep 11, 2018 1:27 PM CDT

New York AG issues subpoenas to state’s 8 Catholic dioceses in sex abuse investigation

The New York attorney general’s office on Thursday issued subpoenas to the states’ eight Catholic dioceses less than a month after the release of a Pennsylvania grand jury report that stated more than 1,000 children identified through the church’s own records were sexually abused by priests for decades. The Wall…

Sep 7, 2018 6:05 AM CDT

Rap song that threatened police officers is not protected speech, Pennsylvania’s top court rules

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has rejected a free speech claim by a rapper who threatened to kill two Pittsburgh police officers he identified by name in a video titled “F— the Police.” The court upheld the conviction of Jamal Knox on charges of witness intimidation and terroristic threats, report the…

Aug 23, 2018 10:29 AM CDT

Grand jury says dioceses in Pennsylvania covered up sex abuse for more than 70 years

A grand jury that investigated child sex abuse in six of Pennsylvania’s eight dioceses has reported credible allegations of abuse against more than 300 priests affecting more than a thousand child victims who were identifiable from church records.

Aug 14, 2018 4:31 PM CDT

Holland & Knight again looks to Reed Smith in Philadelphia office expansion

Holland & Knight’s new Philadelphia office has doubled its headcount after siphoning another 12 lawyers from Reed Smith. The office launched with 11 former Reed Smith partners and one of counsel on July 10, the Legal Intelligencer reported. The expansion includes 11 direct transfers and one attorney who had worked…

Jul 30, 2018 10:03 AM CDT

Assessment board says Bill Cosby is a sexually violent predator; DA asks judge to decide

A district attorney in Pennsylvania has asked the judge who presided at Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial to decide whether the comedian is a “sexually violent predator.” Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele made the request Tuesday after the Pennsylvania Sexual Offenders Assessment Board evaluated Cosby and determined he is…

Jul 25, 2018 9:52 AM CDT

Nonlawyer with a multistate law practice gets 12-year sentence

A New Jersey man convicted of posing as a lawyer while running a multistate law practice has been sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Jul 13, 2018 7:00 AM CDT