2018-09-25 14:22
In an otherwise mundane PCRA affirmance, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled unanimously that a PCRA petitioner may move to amend his petition to add an additional claim, even if that cl… Read More
Blog Directory > Politics Blogs > Government Blogs > SCOPA Review government Blog >
Scopa Review Blog
scopareview.com
Tags:
court
pcra
appeal
federal
officer
pennsylvania
search
equal electionsacirc clause
crispell pcra petitions
death penalty
A Pennsylvania Supreme Court blog, providing modern coverage of America's oldest court.
2018-09-25 13:58
A party at a sorority house led to a drunk college kid on the roof of the house, stumbling about, looking as though he were about to fall off the roof. While the “community caretaking… Read More
2018-03-02 13:48
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Danganan v. Guardian Protective Services that a violation of the Unfair Trade Practices Consumer Protection Law need not have occurred in… Read More
2018-02-26 17:10
In a relatively-unsurprising re-affirmation of recent SCOTUS caselaw, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled 6-0 in Commonwealth v. Fulton that a warrantless search of a cell phone is uncon… Read More
2018-02-26 15:06
The fight over SCOPA’s gerrymandering decision continues. SCOTUS denied cert from the first decision, but now the issuance of the map is being challenged. Lyle Denniston of SCOTUSblog… Read More
2018-02-23 15:00
When two police officers independently have the information necessary to constitute probable cause, but they have not communicated these facts to each other, is the arrest of the defendant c… Read More
2018-02-22 17:40
Commonwealth v. DiMatteo resolves an obscure overlap in sentencing rules in Pennsylvania, confirming that a Defendant is entitled to resentencing where he was not sentenced on his open plea… Read More
2018-02-14 16:12
In Shearer v. Hafer, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania rules 6-1 that an interlocutory appeal was not appropriate in a pretrial discovery dispute over whether a plaintiff has the right to co… Read More
2018-02-14 13:39
Ever since the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued an expedited order in League of Women Voters v. Commonwealth, ordering the Commonwealth Court to proceed with discovery and findings of fact… Read More
2018-02-13 02:51
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled 6-0 in Commonwealth v. VanDivner that a defendant whose intellectual impairments interfere with his ability to cognitively adapt is mentally incompete… Read More
2018-02-13 02:15
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled in County of Allegheny v. Workers Compensation Appeal Board that an award of attorneys’ fees against an employer for an… Read More
2018-02-13 01:54
It will qualify as the least surprising holding of the year: in Office of Disciplinary Counsel v. Pozonsky, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled 7-0 that a former Court of Common Pleas ju… Read More
2018-01-31 18:57
The unanimous Court rejected the arguments of a PCRA petitioner in Com v. Wholaver. As regular followers of the Court are aware, all death penalty cases result in a direct appeal to the Supr… Read More
2018-01-22 19:14
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania decided today in a 4-3 per curiam decision that the congressional map drawn by the General Assembly is too partisan, and must be stricken because it violate… Read More
2018-01-18 16:33
Our roundup is all about Gerrymandering today.
The Allentown Morning Call covers the oral argument and provides quotes from political operatives on both sides. The Philly Inquirer gives… Read More
2017-12-21 15:09
Two Pennsylvania Supreme Court cases get early coverage, while the other December releases remain quiet.
The Allentown Morning Call interviews the ACLU about Com v. $34,440 and the ongoing c… Read More
2017-12-21 14:41
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania continues its consideration of the powers of civil forfeiture in a 5-2 decision that the “proximity to drugs” presumption in civil forfeiture pr… Read More
2017-12-20 14:39
A divided Supreme Court of Pennsylvania agreed that a lawsuit against a law firm based on a breach of a contract should be allowed to move forward, even though the alleged contract would hav… Read More
2017-12-07 14:30
It’s always strange to wake up to find that TMZ is covering Pennsylania law. Coverage of Rapper Meek Mill’s curious case continues with calls for investigation into the tria… Read More
2017-12-05 16:03
The Court is getting a lot of coverage this year, and Pennsylvania law has been back in the spotlight with more high-profile cases. To that end, a judge on the Superior Court has denied… Read More
2017-12-05 03:40
In Scarnati v. Wolf, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania rules 6-1 that a press release does not satisfy the Pennsylvania Constitution’s requirement of veto by proclamation under Article… Read More
2017-12-01 03:27
In Commonwealth v. Livingstone, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled that a police officer must have articulable explanation for his “community caretaking” to use it as an exc… Read More
2017-12-01 02:17
In an unusually brief, unanimous opinion, Chief Justice Saylor ruled that the Superior Court erred in finding a dispute between two parties moot where the facts of record did not clearly dem… Read More
2017-11-23 16:15
Right to Know (RTK) requests by several defense attorneys in Centre County (home of Mount Nittany) revealed communications between DA Stacy Parks Miller and judges on CCP and MDC, which the… Read More
2017-11-23 15:28
On July 22, 2005, Mr. Bristol was injured when he was struck in a hit and run accident within the scope of his employment in Upper Dublin Township (childhood home of Josh Singer, an Emmy-nom… Read More
2017-11-23 02:50
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is, perhaps, the most powerful state Supreme Court within its own jurisdiction. Given comprehensive power over all attorney discipline matters by the state… Read More
2017-11-16 22:32
In a criminal prosecution about sexual assault of a child, a medical doctor opined, “The history [the child] provided to me pretty clearly indicated that she was sexually abused.&rdquo&hell…Read More
2017-10-19 23:40
The Post-Conviction Relief Act (“PCRA”) allows a criminal defendant to file a petition within one year of final judgment seeking review of his conviction. This protection ensures… Read More
2017-10-19 20:37
A police widow in Arnold, Pennsylvania (home to Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood Musical Director, Johnny Costa), received 50% of her husband’s pension for several years before a helpful… Read More
2017-10-19 19:42
When paying corporate income tax in Pennsylvania, a corporation is permitted to carry over a net loss from the previous year to reduce the current tax year’s taxable income. However, t… Read More
2017-10-19 17:21
DCD, a ten-year-old child with a low IQ, was adjudicated delinquent after sexually assaulting his younger sister. Several sexual assaults followed as DCD was moved from facility to facility… Read More
2017-10-06 19:42
The Autism Coverage Law requires insurance companies to provide coverage for autism treatment under certain group plans. One coverage specifically included in the statute is “applied b… Read More
2017-09-29 21:18
When is blood alcohol content (BAC) admissible in a civil case to prove negligence (including contributory negligence)? In the context of a car accident, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ha… Read More
2017-09-29 18:45
The opening paragraph of this case read like an Alfred Hitchcock screenplay. The police
received a call that originated from Monica Schmeyer’s residence . . . When the police arrived… Read More
2017-09-29 13:47
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in Lomas v. Kravitz that a motion for recusal must be made as soon as the facts on which the motion is based come to light, or be forever barred.
James K… Read More
2017-09-29 03:49
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court adopted the Superior Court’s Terletsky v. Prudential Property & Cas. Ins. Co. standard for determining bad faith, ruling that no evide… Read More
2017-08-23 23:55
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania rules that filing late for a special election cannot be excused.
25 P.S. § 2779 requires that a political party putting forth a candidate for a special… Read More
2017-08-23 22:20
18 Pa.C.S. § 6318 criminalizes “Unlawful Contact with a Minor.” One might think of this statute as an inchoate for the entire child-sexual-victimizing portion of the crimina… Read More
2017-06-21 12:22
Quigley was an attorney with a “generally good reputation as a good trial attorney.” However, Mr. Quigley began to have money problems. Other difficulties arose, including when a… Read More
2017-05-03 00:55
Civil lawyers know—and may even fear—the threat of a Dragonetti action. The draconian name accurately depicts one of the few times in law that a lawyer can subsequently be calle… Read More
Pittman V. Pa. Bd. Of Probation And Parole: Board Abused Its Discretion By Failing To Use Discretion
2017-04-29 19:06
The Parole Violation statute requires the Board of Probation and Parole to use its discretion when considering whether to credit “time at liberty on parole” to a convicted parole… Read More
2017-04-28 01:45
Com v. Yandamuri was a direct capital appeal case pursuant to the Court’s responsibility to directly review all death penalty cases. In a botched baby-kidnapping-for-ransom attempt, Ra… Read More
2017-04-27 12:02
In order to facilitate efficient and final labor agreements for public entities, Pennsylvania’s Act 111 provides for binding arbitration where an impasse in negotiations is reached. Su… Read More
2017-04-09 16:25
A child’s legal interests are not the same as his best interests, and in proceedings for the Termination of Parental Rights, the child has a statutory right to counsel for the former… Read More
2017-04-03 16:01
The pecking order of preferred advocates, the non-lawyer is preferable to the suspended lawyer. In Powell v. UCBR, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that, while a non-attorney may practic… Read More
2017-03-15 14:43
Today’s roundup is entirely composed of reaction to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania’s choice of Allegheny County for the new venire in the Bill Cosby case.
Phil DiLuc… Read More
2017-03-14 20:00
The “Twelve Angry Men” who will be called upon to decide Bill Cosby’s fate in his pending rape trial will hail from Allegheny County, the Supreme Court decided yesterday. U… Read More
2017-02-23 13:09
Sometimes, a few words can be very expensive; sometimes, they don’t matter. 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 1731 of the Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law (“MVFRL”) prescribes… Read More
2017-02-22 17:59
The facts in this case are a repeat of those in Com v. Knight, and they are horrific enough not to bear repeating. Smyrnes appears to have been the ringleader of the conspirators described i… Read More
Subscribe to Scopa Review
Get updates delivered right to your inbox!