Pennsylvania Attorney General Convicted On Nine Perjury Counts

Kathleen Kane, the first-term Democratic Attorney General of Pennsylvania, has been convicted of nine counts of perjury and obstruction by a state judge. Kane was accused of leaking grand jury information during a scandal aimed at discrediting a former rival.

“It turns on the perception that she abused her power,” David Zellis, a former prosecutor in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, told The New York Times. “She is the chief law enforcement officer for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. … I think that it’s turned the whole criminal justice system in the state upside down.”

“The Office of Attorney General and its employees, as well as the people of Pennsylvania, deserve to move on,” Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf stated after the verdict was read, calling Kane to step down from her role as Attorney General.

According to CBS News, the feud began when former office prosecutor Frank Fina allegedly planted a story claiming Kane had dropped a statehouse sting.

“She was just hell-bent on getting back at Frank Fina,” Josh Morrow, a political consultant, stated.

Kane contests that the charges against her are revenge for an investigation that led to the resignation of two state Supreme Court justices.

“We have been denied the opportunity to mount a full defense,” said Kane’s lead attorney, Gerald Shargel, reports The New York Times.

“Things that the commonwealth says do not hold up to scrutiny when you look at the actual evidence,” Seth Farber, another defense lawyer for Kane, said. He added that Adrian King and Josh Morrow, two of the prosecution’s witnesses, were to blame.

“Those are two witnesses who will say whatever they need to in order to protect themselves,” Farber said. “You would not even buy a used car from one of them.”

But Michelle Henry, a prosecutor in the case, disagrees.

“What she did while she was attorney general — the fact that she committed criminal acts when she’s the top prosecutor — is a disgrace.”

Kane has not yet been sentenced, but her two felony perjury charges alone carry seven years prison time each. 

Sources: CBS News, The New York Times / Photo credit: phillydotcom via Instagram