Pa. Supreme Court: Kane not barred from releasing porn emails

Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane has said her legal problems stem from an attempt by enemies to block her from exposing their exchange of pornographic emails on state computers.

But newly unsealed documents show that Kane was told nearly nine months ago by the state's highest court that she was not restricted from publicly releasing information about the messages.

On Tuesday, the state Supreme Court unsealed two orders, both from last December, in which the justices ruled that Kane was not barred from "appropriate" disclosure of the pornographic images.

In unsealing the orders, the high court sent a rebuke to Kane, who last week argued that the criminal case against her was set in motion by foes who were fearful that their exchange of the emails would become public.

Kane was charged this month with conspiracy, perjury, and other crimes for allegedly leaking confidential documents and then lying about it under oath before a grand jury. Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said Kane arranged an illegal leak of the materials to the Philadelphia Daily News to embarrass a onetime top prosecutor in her office, Frank Fina, whom she blamed for negative news coverage.

Kane's attorney, Gerald Shargel, said in a statement Tuesday that in light of the court's orders, the pornographic emails were certain to be made public. He did not say when the messages would be released.

"We expect that appropriate public disclosure will occur in connection with the vigorous defense of the criminal charges that have been laid against her," Shargel said. "These images and the emails to which they are attached are essential to demonstrating Attorney General Kane's innocence."

Shargel's statement did not address that Kane and her legal team have known about the high court's position on the emails since last year. Nor did it explain why Kane had nonetheless maintained that she was barred from publicly releasing the emails.

Shargel could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Last fall, Kane, a Democrat, released the names of eight men who sent or received the X-rated material on state computers. The eight were officials who worked for Tom Corbett, a Republican, when he was attorney general.

But she said she was barred from exposing all the emails' senders and recipients because of a protective order issued during the a grand jury investigation into how the Daily News obtained the confidential material last year.

The order, issued by Montgomery County Court Judge William R. Carpenter last summer, prohibited retaliation or intimidation against witnesses in the case, including several of Kane's top staffers.

The Supreme Court orders unsealed Tuesday say Carpenter's protective order was not intended to restrict the "appropriate disclosure" of information involving the pornographic emails.

The justices did not define "appropriate disclosure." But lawyers familiar with the case said Tuesday that while the court was saying Kane was free to release information about the emails, it was also sending a strong signal that the materials should not be used as a weapon to embarrass witnesses or target any person for exposure.

Kane has been criticized as selectively releasing the names of people who circulated the pornographic images. Though dozens of people participated in the exchanges, Kane only named eight.

All had ties to Fina, whom prosecutors say Kane blamed for a March 2014 article in The Inquirer that revealed she had secretly shut down a sting investigation that caught elected officials on tape accepting cash or gifts from an undercover informant.

The Inquirer has reported that Fina was among those who shared in the pornographic emails, and that Kane has been intent on making that public. Sources close to Kane have said she believes naming Fina would violate Carpenter's protective order.