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Nazareth, Pa., United States

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

DA Morganelli to AG Corbett: Let's Do Something About Lost and Stolen Guns

Unlike AG Tom Corbett, who operates from the plush surroundings of Strawberry Square, DA John Morganelli is a front-line prosecutor who sees the face of crime every day. He knows, as few do, what damage is done by guns.

That's why this AG hopeful has proposed that something be done now, instead of waiting for his eventual election. He is asking Corbett to adopt a regulation requiring that police be informed when someone loses his handgun

In a news release sent out last night, Morganelli characterizes death by gunfire as a serious public safety issue that "has been all but ignored by the current Attorney General."

"While thousands of Pennsylvanians, including police officers and children die each year because of a proliferation of handguns into the hands of criminals, young children and the mentally ill, Tom Corbett remains silent. The statistics are staggering.

" * Pennsylvania ranks #6 in the nation for hand-gun homicides involving children.* Nearly 500 children and teens each year are killed in the US in gun related accidents.
* Pennsylvania consistently leads the nation in African-American homicide victims. Approximately 80% of those homicides are committed with handguns.
* Pennsylvania is the #1 source state for recovered crime guns in Camden and Trenton, New Jersey, and is a bigger source for crime guns recovered in New York City than the State of New York itself.
* In Pennsylvania, death by gunfire is responsible for the deaths of approximately 1200 people each year. *There are about 34,000 gun related deaths each year in the US.
* Over 80% of the killings in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are committed with handguns, most often by people with criminal records who are unable to purchase handguns from a licensed dealer—they instead buy them illegally.
* In Pennsylvania in 2006, guns were used in 563 homicides, 5981 aggravated assaults, and 8,907 robberies- most by people who could not lawfully purchase a gun.
*And, this is not just a problem in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. In all our cities, from Erie to Butler, to Harrisburg, to Lancaster, Reading, the Lehigh Valley, Doylestown, Norristown, Chester and Media and more, too many guns are in the hands of criminals, the young, and those with mental illness."


Morganelli notes that Corbett sat silently when the state legislature tried, and failed, to pass a law requiring that lost or stolen handguns be reported, but claims the AG could easily adopt this requirement as a consumer protection regulation. "One of the problems is that we have had absolutely no leadership from the Pennsylvania Attorney General. For 28 years, Republicans have controlled the OAG and have remained silent, passively supporting the blocking of any real action on gun violence. Attorney General Corbett takes his marching orders from the NRA who contributes thousands of dollars to his campaign. We need an AG who will provide leadership to advance an agenda that will assist law enforcement in the investigation of gun crime, and hamper criminals, the mentally disturbed, and children from obtaining firearms, and protect our police officers who are becoming more and more the targets of guns wrongfully in the hands of criminals."

Morganelli will present more details this afternoon about this common-sense gun control initiative. Unfortunately, he'll be doing it from Philly, so I'll miss it.

You like John? Visit his webpage and give him some money. Corbett is raking it in from all the bluebloods, but there's moire of us. Even $10 will help.

3 comments:

Bill Villa said...

Bernie, I'd like your readers to know that Northampton County DA John Morganelli called me this past Friday. Over the course of a very gracious 40-minute phone conversation, DA Morganelli helped me sort through some questions I have on my daughter Sheena's death case (and another DUI homicide case) that Lehigh County DA Jim Martin has been refusing to address for over 2 years. I really appreciated Morganelli's thoughtfulness and the good direction he gave me which I will follow-through on.

Chris Miller said...

Bernie
Let me suggest that what we do is enforce the laws that are on the books. Governor Thornburg's administration put a mandatory 5 year prison term on using a gun while committing a crime. That, as many have informend me, is the first give away held out to felons so we can catch bigger fish. B---s--- is all I have to say on that matter. If we have a law on the books of this nature why don't we use it?
Next let's get rid of cushy prison life. Let me recommnend Sheriff Joe from Maracopa County in Arizona. Let's restore the chain gang. No weight lifting. No coffee in the morning. Sandwichhes at lunch. Live in tents if it becomes overcrowded. No televison. Educational tapes like Newt's speeches on American History. Stop the catering to the damnable crimnals
I guarantee you that making nice gun laws will only make matters worse. Put the cops to work looking for the straw sellers of guns. Punish harsly those who committ this crime and let the law abiding citizens alone.

Anonymous said...

In The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania

Middle District


Supreme Court of Pennsylvania docket number 272 MAL 2008



Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

v.

Jacuqin Jaron Byrd




Motion to file Amicus Curiae to Petition for Allowance of Appeal


Appeal from the judgment of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, dated April 15, 2008, at number 1873 EDA 2007, affirming the judgment of sentence by the Honorable William T. Nicholas of the petitioners direct appeal dated July 24, 2007, IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA, CRIMINAL DIVISION, AT NO. 1939-06

As per. Conformance to Requirements (Pa. R.A.P. 2101) I request of the courts authority to permit non-conformity in petition as time is of the essence and the merit of facts be paramount in the public interest of judicial competence over form.
In this courts assessment of this motion for Amicus Curiae and request for wavier of conformity, when taken in its totality, will support the extraordinary facts and circumstances directly surrounding this case involving widespread criminal public corruption in law enforcement and judicial personal.




Richard Liberatoscioli / petitioner
203 W. Washington St.
West Chester, PA 19380
Tel: 610-945-8050
ncssi@msn.com

TO THE HONORABLE,
THE JUSTICES OF THE SUPREME COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA:

Justice Ronald D. Castille
Justice Thomas G. Saylor
Justice J. Michael Eakin
Justice Max Baer
Justice Debra Todd
Justice Seamus P. McCaffery

Prelude

In the appeal for a new and competent trial currently before you (Commonwealth of PA v. Jacuqin Jaron Byrd), there has existed from its case conception widespread State and Federal Felony Criminal Public Corruption involving the law enforcement personal including the justices presiding this case.
As many formal criminal felony complaints have been filed against these public officials at local, county, state and federal levels, no investigation has been conducted even after Governor Edward Rendell asked for a full investigation of the felony charges be investigated by the Montgomery County District Attorney and the Lower Merion Township board of Commissioners.

The following copy is submitted that will hopefully show “in essence” of why the appeal for a new trial be granted:

Mr. Byrd,
Thank you! …. for writing your letter to me. I write you at this time to introduce myself to you and to share our common concern for fair and equal justice for all people of our community.
In following the events and submitted evidence of your case, it was blatantly evident you did not receive a fair and un-biased trial. I’m sure your father’s father and your father have handed down to you the knowledge of the cruel and unconscionable injustice to a community when criminal public corruption exists within our justice system. What you did receive was nothing less than a pre-meditated “lynching”.
What you were not told at your trial was that your trial judge was identified by Montgomery County Senior Norristown Detective as a felon directly involved of the felony crimes committed by the Lower Merion Police under the direct knowledge of Superintendent Joe Daly. This was affirmed by the staff of our local District Justice in Lower Merion.

State and Federal felony criminal charges filed against the Lower Merion Police include the fabrication of police evidence, fabrication of police reports, premeditated felony attack and attempted murder by the Lower Merion Police resulting in permanent disabilities. Resent threats to carry out this murder by Lower Merion Police Department remain un-investigated thru a long standing criminal collaboration throughout Montgomery County.
The Lower Merion Township Board of Commissioners has long been served official notice of the felony crimes under their authority and sworn duty to enforce the laws of the commonwealth. The Lower Merion Township Board of commissioners promised “a full investigation of these crimes” … yet months later … was told there was no investigation by the board.
The criminal municipal corruption is widespread in this matter. In short, evidence presented against you was sourced from felons within the Lower Merion Police Department and in criminal collaboration by other law enforcement employees including your trial judge. These felony criminal charges were made known to your “court appointed lawyer” from the District Attorneys office … yet he presented nothing of this criminal injustice in your behalf.
For the judge to have given you a fair trial he knew the charges of fabrication of police evidence, fabrication of police reports and many other felony crimes committed by the Lower Merion Police ........... would lead right back to him exposing his involvement in the felony crimes at Lower Merion Police.
Mr. Byrd, you were “lynched” ….. to avoid discovery of the felony crimes of the Lower Merion Police and other “law enforcement” employees in criminal collaboration.
Emergency petitions for injunctions against this judge to make “judgments” in your case are being sought to afford you a fair and un-biased trial. A statewide special grand jury is being requested from the PA Attorney General, as the municipal corruption is dangerously widespread.
The felony crimes were committed during the height of the Lower Merion Police attempts to obtain “accreditation” of competent police work. Commissioner Maryam Phillips was directly involved as head of the “Police oversight committee” in the review of all the police reports in question. The PA Chiefs of Police gave accreditation to the LMPD Police Department …. making the PA Chiefs of Police “accreditation program” a dangerous and worthless accreditation program for proof of competent police work for any community.
In filing formal petition under their own by-laws to the PA Chiefs of Police to show cause for desertification of this “bogus accreditation” ….. they will not even respond.
Formal charges of criminal municipal corruption against Lower Merion Police and the Lower Merion Township Board of Commissioners have been filed with the PA Attorney General Office.
PA Attorney General Tom Corbett is also the commissioner of this PA Chiefs of Police “accreditation program” where he was featured on the top of the list of commission members at the PA Chiefs of Police website. If you look today at their website PA Attorney General Tom Corbett was removed from the website and replaced by a front man from the PA Attorney Generals office. He told me PA Attorney General Tom Corbett is still an active member of the commission.
This will be the true test of PA Attorney General Tom Corbett …. of how well he does in cleaning out “his own house” of public criminal corruption.

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” – MLK Jr.

Justice William T. Nicholas 38th Judicial District (Montgomery County, PA)
Justice Kathleen M. Valentine 38-1-07 (District Justice)
Superintendent Joseph Daly Lower Merion Police


I respectfully ask the Honorable Supreme Court Justices of Pennsylvania to intervene by order of formal criminal investigation of the deeply entwined facts and circumstances of these crimes.

Sincerely,

Richard Liberatoscioli

Cc:
Representing: Jacuqin Jaron Byrd, Petitioner
William Read McElroy, Esq.
Address: 101 E Moreland Avenue
Hatboro, PA 19040
Phone No.: (215)773-0543

Representing: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Respondent
Risa Vetri Ferman, Esq.
Montgomery County District Attorney's Office
Swede & Airy Sts PO Box 311
Norristown, PA 19404-0311
Phone No.: (610)278-3099