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Monday, March 18, 2024 | Back issues
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Court Readies Kathleen Kane for Perjury Trial

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (CN) — Embattled Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane made a whirlwind court appearance Wednesday morning in which her attorney and the judge briefly locked horns.

Pennsylvania's first woman and Democrat elected to the position of attorney general, Kane faces a trial this summer in Montgomery County Circuit Court on charges of perjury, obstruction and official oppression.

Wearing a mint-green skirt suit, and flanked by her attorneys, Kane appeared calm and collected as she entered the courtroom this morning, saying she felt "good."

Kane remains in office, despite the suspension of her law license by the state Supreme Court and calls for her resignation from Gov. Tom Wolf, amid charges that she lied under oath about having leaked documents to embarrass political rivals,

The leaked materials implicate judges and prosecutors involved in the Jerry Sandusky investigation, but Kane's team had initially sought to go after prosecutors on a supposed leak of their own.

To the court's surprise Wednesday, however, Kane's team cited public attention in withdrawing a motion for an evidentiary hearing on whether prosecutors shared FBI recordings with a newspaper in Allentown, Pennsylvania, called the Morning Call.

Kane's attorney, Gerald Shargel of the Manhattan firm Winston & Strawn, also decided not to try to file a separate prosecutorial misconduct motion under seal.

Judge Wendy Demchick-Alloy became curt with the attorney when she said she would consider whether any issues merit an interim appeal.

"I don't know if this is an instance of a New York practitioner in Pennsylvania, but it is what it is," Demchick-Alloy barked. "The process in Pennsylvania is that the trial court has the option to certify or not certify. That may be appealable to you, but the commonwealth has the right to weigh in if this issue is certifiable."

Shargel had queried whether such matters belonged in circuit court.

At the start of the hearing, Judge Demchick-Alloy had Kane take the stand and swear into court to colloquy her.

Describing this as standard procedure, the judge said this process makes the record clear that Kane is in agreement with her defense team.

Kane agreed and was on the stand for less than two minutes.

Judge Demchick-Alloy then granted the defense one week to file "whatever you feel appropriate," and the commonwealth has one week after that.

All filing is due on May 4.

Without any argument or witnesses heard, the court was adjourned only 20 minutes after being called to session.

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