A different kind of 'Angel' lands in Harrisburg
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As he promised, Harrisburg citizen activist Gene Stilp erected a 15-foot-high plywood statue of an angel outside the Pennsylvania Judicial Center, urging state Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin to resign.
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HARRISBURG -- The state Supreme Court is expected to have a visiting angel today, but it's not carrying a friendly message.
Harrisburg political gadfly Gene Stilp -- noteworthy for using an inflatable pink pig to chide the state legislature when members tried to give themselves a raise in 2005 -- is putting up a 15-foot-tall statue of an "angel lady" here Tuesday.
The angel is intended to make fun of state Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin and two of her sisters, who sought guidance from a Philadelphia woman who claims to hear whispered advice from angels.
State Sen. Jane Orie, R-McCandless, and her sister Janine are facing criminal charges of using the senator's public office and employees to campaign for a third sister, Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin.
Justice Melvin is under investigation by an Allegheny County grand jury.
The story, first reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, said "the Orie sisters consulted with an angel lady when they wanted to know the future of the charges against them," Mr. Stilp said.
The statue will be displayed in front of the state's new Judicial Center, just down the street from the Capitol, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
"The message the 15-foot angel is telling Judge Orie Melvin is to resign immediately," said Mr. Stilp.
Jane and Janine Orie have been charged by Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. with using state-paid staff to work on Justice Melvin's campaign for the high court last year. They were held for trial after a preliminary hearing last week.
The Post-Gazette reported, based on court filings, that the Orie sisters, in November, consulted the Philadelphia psychic to find out whether any charges might be filed.
"While the angel lady is free to predict the future," Mr. Stilp said, "the three Orie sisters are in their own cauldron and have some real criminal problems boiling over. A non-psychic judge just held Sen. Jane and Janine over for trial, while Justice Joan Orie Melvin is the subject of a grand jury investigation."
First Published July 27, 2010 12:00 am
