District Attorney

Joshua Scott Albert's Facebook posts calling for the killing of police and Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams were clearly satire, his lawyer said. Granted, they were stupid satire, unfunny, and in bad taste, said defense attorney Lloyd E. Long III, but constitutionally protected free speech nonetheless. Unfortunately for Albert, satire, like beauty, seems to be in the eye of the beholder. And to Municipal Court Judge Teresa Carr Deni, Albert's Internet witticisms were worth a trial for criminal solicitation to commit murder, terroristic threats, and harassment.

SCRANTON - Vowing to lead her office as a prosecutor and not a politician, Democrat Kathleen Kane sailed to victory Tuesday in her historic bid to become the first woman and first member of her party elected as Pennsylvania's attorney general. The former Lackawanna County prosecutor outpaced Cumberland County District Attorney David Freed, her GOP rival, with a commanding lead that put her on track to win with a margin wider than that of any other Democrat on the statewide ballot.

SCRANTON, Pa. - Vowing to lead her office as a prosecutor, not a politician, Democrat Kathleen Kane apparently sailed to victory Tuesday in her historic bid to become the first woman and first member of her party elected as Pennsylvania's attorney general. The former Lackawanna County prosecutor was outpacing Cumberland County District Attorney David Freed, her GOP rival, with a commanding lead that as of late Tuesday put her on pace to perform better than any other Democrat on the statewide ballot.

A Delaware County man has been charged with murder in the beating death of his 6-year-old nephew, the district attorney's office announced. Paul Adams, 38 of Wallingford, allegedly lashed Tyreece Charlow for 45 minutes with a large belt after the child would not listen or follow directions, according to court documents. Jack Whelan, the district attorney will hold a news conference at 1 p.m. to give further details. The child, a student at Nether Providence Elementary School, lived with Adams.

The state's top law enforcement job is up for grabs this fall, with Republican and Democratic candidates who each bring at least a dozen years' experience as prosecutors. There's no doubt that David Freed, the Cumberland County district attorney, and Kathleen Kane, a former assistant Lackawanna County district attorney, both qualify to serve as Pennsylvania's next attorney general. A third candidate, York attorney Marakay Rogers, is running as a Libertarian. In addition to the job's expansive prosecution duties covering public corruption, drug enforcement, organized crime, and consumer fraud, the attorney general defends the state against lawsuits, reviews regulations, and serves on several agency boards - notably, the Board of Pardons.

By Malcolm Lazin In 1977, having successfully headed federal grand jury investigations into public corruption, I ran as a Republican for Philadelphia district attorney. Arlen Specter, who had lost his bid for reelection as district attorney four years earlier despite having distinguished himself as a prosecutor, served as honorary chairman of my campaign, and we met once a week. While I ended up losing to a then-unknown Democrat named Edward Rendell, I won in that I learned from Specter and became his friend.

A story Saturday on Mayor Nutter's apologizing to a woman struck by a Philadelphia police officer incorrectly stated the process for referring a police Internal Affairs investigation. The department's Internal Affairs Department conducts the investigation and submits its findings to the district attorney. It is then up to the district attorney to decide whether to charge the officer. The Inquirer wants its news report to be fair and correct in every respect, and regrets when it is not. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, contact assistant managing editor David Sullivan (215-854-2357)

THE STATE'S chief justice, Ronald Castille, won't step down from a last-minute death-penalty appeal although he supervised the case when he was the city's district attorney and despite a state judge's finding that Castille's staff hid evidence at trial. Attorneys for Terrance "Terry" Williams had asked Castille to recuse himself because Castille supervised Williams' murder case and signed off on the 1986 death-penalty prosecution. Castille has filed an order denying the recusal motion.

Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Monday rejected a defense motion to disqualify himself from the case of Terrance Williams because he had been the city district attorney when Williams was condemned to death. Trying to preserve a stay that will keep Williams, 46, out of the execution chamber Wednesday, Williams' lawyers contended that Castille's participation created the appearance of a conflict of interest. Castille, however, denied the motion in a one-sentence order late Monday.

HARRISBURG - A Republican group in Washington dedicated to electing party members to state-level offices said Friday that it would withdraw a TV ad against the Pennsylvania Democratic candidate for attorney general that erroneously tied her as a former prosecutor to "a weak plea deal" in a rape case. The Republican State Leadership Committee will replace the ad with one that still maintains Kathleen Kane was soft on crime when she was a Lackawanna County prosecutor, committee spokesman Adam Temple said.