Orie wants alleged leaks probed
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The defense attorney for state Sen. Jane Orie, R-McCandless, is asking for the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate alleged leaks from the grand jury.
William Costopoulos contends that the Allegheny County district attorney's office leaked information to local news media that the senator's sister, state Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin, received a grand jury target letter in December.
In an earlier motion, Mr. Costopoulos asked that the jury hearing the trial of Ms. Orie and another sister, Janine Orie, be sequestered, but the new motion takes the claims a step further.
He argues that an investigation into the purported leaks "could produce probative evidence of prosecutorial misconduct."
Mr. Costopoulos goes on to say that the results of such an investigation could be the basis for a motion to dismiss the charges against his client.
Mike Manko, a spokesman with the district attorney's office, said he had no comment on the request for a special prosecutor.
But in a written answer filed regarding jury sequestration, Assistant District Attorney Lawrence Claus denies that any information was leaked by prosecutors.
Instead, he implied that the leak came from the defense camp.
"[V]arious attorneys associated with the Orie family, and even one member of the Orie family itself, have been identified as the source of those reports of purported 'grand jury' activity related to the Ories," Mr. Claus wrote.
He called the claims by the defense "unsubstantiated, bald accusations."
Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning, who is presiding over the Orie criminal trial scheduled to begin Feb. 27, referred the motion for a special prosecutor to Judge Joseph James, who is the supervising judge of the grand jury.
University of Pittsburgh law professor John Burkoff, who has been following the Orie case closely, said motions asking for special prosecutors in these types of situations are uncommon.
First Published February 14, 2012 12:00 am
