Pennsylvania

Lawmakers say piercings and tattoos are for people, not pets

Joining at least one other state, lawmakers in New York have banned people from piercing and putting tattoos on their pets. The law was signed Monday by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and takes effect in 120 days, reports the Associated Press. It contains some exceptions, including identification marks and work done…

Dec 15, 2014 5:25 PM CST

Police seek man suspected of slaying ex-wife, 5 others after contentious child-custody battle

Police were still searching late in the day Monday for a Pennsylvania man suspected of gunning down six family members in three different Montgomery County municipalities in the morning, including his ex-wife, after a long-running divorce and custody battle. A military veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder, Bradley William Stone, 35,…

Dec 15, 2014 4:35 PM CST

Judge is investigated amid controversy over courtroom audio-recording system

A Pennsylvania judge has been removed from hearing criminal cases, at her own request, amid a controversy over the audio-recording system at the Monroe County courthouse. District Attorney E. David Christine Jr. is among those who are concerned the system may be picking up attorney conversations that are supposed to…

Dec 9, 2014 11:00 AM CST

Longtime law firm employee who stole at least $150K gets 2 years for tax evasion

A 40-year employee of a Pennsylvania law firm was sentenced Friday to two years in federal prison after admittedly embezzling at least $150,000 from McDonald Snyder & Lightcap beween 2007 and 2010. Debra Feather, 64, was sentenced after pleading guilty in a federal income tax evasion case in August, the…

Dec 5, 2014 2:25 PM CST

Nonprofit funds drug prosecutor and cops, who turn addicts into informants

A nonprofit group formed by business leaders in Altoona, Pennsylvania, has funded a drug prosecutor and police efforts to fight the drug trade. The nonprofit, Operation Our Town, and the drug-busting operations it funds are drawing some critics, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. They argue the group is funding police tactics…

Dec 1, 2014 8:59 AM CST

Philadelphia attorney is charged with sexually assaulting a trafficked 14-year-old at his law office

A Philadelphia attorney has been criminally charged for allegedly paying for sex with a 14-year-old victim of a human-trafficking ring, including bringing the girl to his Center City law office for sex acts. District Attorney Seth Williams said the girl testified to a grand jury that Brian Meehan told her…

Nov 25, 2014 2:55 PM CST

Prominent lawyer accused of assaulting employee after a night of drinking takes misdemeanor plea

Initially accused of driving a law firm employee home after a work-related event and raping her, a prominent Pennsylvania attorney has taken a no-contest plea to a misdemeanor. Because of a lab report misread by Montgomery County prosecutors, the case against Robert Kerns is now being pursued by the state…

Nov 24, 2014 4:30 PM CST

Pennsylvania AG hires high-profile attorneys before grand jury testimony, says she followed the law

Pennsylvania’s top lawyer testified Monday before a grand jury investigating whether her office leaked secret investigative material, but told reporters beforehand that her office did nothing wrong in disclosing information and said she planned to tell the panel the truth. “The Office of Attorney General has cooperated from the beginning…

Nov 19, 2014 6:15 AM CST

Lawyer gets stayed suspension for secretly paying sanctions from law firm account, billing client

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is sparing the law license of a law firm partner who secretly paid $65,000 in discovery sanctions out of his law firm’s operating account and tried to cover part of the money with a bill to his client. The court approved (PDF) a joint petition for…

Nov 18, 2014 12:28 PM CST

Lawyer sues Eric Holder and ATF over his own homemade machine gun, says feds banned it unlawfully

An associate at a Pennsylvania law firm is suing U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, contending that a machine gun he made for himself, through a trust, has unconstitutionally and unlawfully been confiscated. Ryan Watson says in the complaint, which was filed…

Nov 17, 2014 5:14 PM CST

Morgan Lewis OKs ‘mass lateral move’ of 227 Bingham partners, but not a merger

Despite earlier news that a Morgan Lewis & Bockius had approved a merger with struggling Bingham McCutchen, the firm has stopped short of doing so. In a Friday announcement, Morgan Lewis said its partners voted earlier in the day to admit 227 partners from Bingham into the Morgan Lewis partnership.…

Nov 14, 2014 3:05 PM CST

Ex-traffic judge takes felony conflict-of-interest plea, hopes for house arrest

A former Philadephia judge who once held supervisory responsibilities in traffic court has pleaded guilty to felony conflict of interest. Thomasine Tynes, 71, whose lawyer says she suffers from dementia, has cooperated with the Philadelphia district attorney’s office and will not get any additional time due to her plea in…

Nov 10, 2014 4:30 PM CST

SCOTUS overturns ‘perplexing’ appellate decision, rules for cop asserting warrant exception

A police officer who entered a couple’s backyard and accessed their deck without a warrant was entitled to qualified immunity, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a per curiam opinion Monday. The court granted cert and ruled on behalf of Pennsylvania state police officer Jeremy Carroll, who entered the backyard…

Nov 10, 2014 9:55 AM CST

Judge calls former state supreme court judge’s apology letters ‘unsatisfactory,’ orders a do-over

A convicted former justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court won’t have to volunteer at a soup kitchen, the judge overseeing her sentencing has decided. But Joan Orie Melvin does have to send out new letters of apology, Allegheny Common Pleas Judge Lester Nauhaus ruled Tuesday. He described court-ordered letters her…

Nov 4, 2014 5:15 PM CST

Was top Pennsylvania court’s email with AG’s office ex parte? If so, it’s a big deal, experts say

A so-called “porngate” scandal involving explicit email between a now-former justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and the state attorney general’s office could potentially be dwarfed by a bigger uproar. If it should turn out that email between the two entities involved pending cases, that would be an even more…

Nov 4, 2014 4:33 PM CST