Kane argues against suspension
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane argued to the state’s highest court Friday that suspending her law license while she fights criminal charges would violate her constitutional right to due process.
Her lawyers filed a 107-page response to the Supreme Court, the first public confirmation the justices last week ordered her to respond to a petition by Pennsylvania’s legal ethics lawyers for an emergency suspension of her license. The document also sheds light on elements of Kane’s legal strategy in her criminal case.
Kane was charged Aug. 6 by Montgomery County authorities with perjury, obstruction and other offenses based on allegations she leaked secret grand jury information to a newspaper and lied about her actions.
Kane’s lawyers rejected the allegations against her as untrue and said there was no proof her continued practice of law would cause harm. They argued that suspending her license would circumvent explicit constitutional provisions for removing her from office and violate her right to due process of law.
“The central facts of this case are in dispute, and due process demands more than mere allegations set forth in a petition before Attorney General Kane’s right to pursue her profession could be curtailed,” her lawyers wrote. They asked for “a hearing before an impartial fact finder.”
The Pennsylvania Constitution requires the attorney general to be a licensed lawyer, and court officials have said that suspending her law license would not remove her from office because they do not have the power to remove her.
Kane, the first woman and first Democrat elected as the state’s attorney general, was sworn in nearly three years ago. Her term expires in January 2017.
If her license is suspended, it could lead to a legal fight over her status as the state’s top law enforcement officer. Even with a suspended law license, Kane potentially could exert influence over the office. For instance, she might be able hire and fire and retain the perk of traveling with a security detail.
