Fake cell messages upheld

HARRISBURG - Police acted lawfully when they used a suspect's cellphone to send texts to an alleged accomplice, the state Supreme Court ruled Monday.

The case centered on a 2007 investigation of a vehicle that was stopped for speeding in Clearfield County. Troopers recovered drugs, a gun, and a cellphone from the car driven by Michael Amodeo. With his help, troopers sent faked messages to alleged accomplice Stephen Lanier.

Lanier and another man were charged with drug offenses. A judge ruled that police had violated the Wiretap Act.

Justice Seamus McCaffery wrote that eavesdropping did not occur.