Former Pennsylvania Justice Melvin drops appeal; DA questions her apology letters
A former Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice who was convicted for using publicly paid staffers in her campaign is dropping her appeal.
Toward that end, former Justice Joan Orie Melvin drafted apology letters to former staffers and the state judiciary that were mandated as part of her sentence, report the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Legal Intelligencer, TribLive.com and the Associated Press. She is also required to serve three years of house arrest.
In the apology to judges, Melvin says she pleaded not guilty, lost at trial, and exhausted her direct appeals. “As a matter of law, I am guilty of these offenses,” she wrote in the apology. “This has been a humiliating experience. It has likewise brought unfathomable distress to my family. In reflection, I wish I had been more diligent in my supervision of my staff and that I had given them more careful instructions with respect to the prohibition on political activity. … I hope that my case will serve as a cautionary tale to all of you.”
Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala has some concerns about the apology letters, his spokesman Mike Manko told several publications. “While Ms. Orie Melvin contends in her filing that she wishes to resume her entire sentence including the issuance of letters of apology,” Manko said in a statement, “attempting to deflect blame for her actions to members of her staff can hardly be considered an apology.”
Hat tip to How Appealing.
