Prosecutors
DAs Seek Change in Law that Allowed Disclosure of Prosecutor Phone Records
Posted Jul 17, 2008, 11:24 am CDT
By Debra Cassens Weiss
The Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association is seeking a change in a state law that allowed a defense lawyer to obtain prosecutors’ cell phone records.
The law permits lawyers in criminal cases to subpoena cell phone and e-mail records without notifying the target, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. Prosecutors fear criminals could use the law to identify confidential informants or find witnesses in their cases.
Defense lawyer Sal Cognetti Jr. used the law to subpoena cell phone records of two prosecutors and two police detectives, the story says. He sought the records in an effort to learn the source of grand jury leaks in a case involving his client, priest Joseph Sica.
Sica was indicted on perjury charges for allegedly lying about associations with organized crime figures during a hearing on a casino license for one of his friends.
Hat tip to Criminal Justice Journalists.
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