AG Kane announces release of judge’s private emails

Attorney General Kathleen Kane announced today that her office will release to members of the mediaa cache of private emails — available exclusively in hard-copy compact disc form from her office in Harrisburg — from the account of Justice Michael Eakin.

Metro is currently in the process of obtaining the disc. Check back with metro.us for updates.

The release of the emails seems to be in part, a response to a state Judicial Conduct Board’s statement that they had not yet received all of Eakins’ emails — which Kane denied — and a fulfillment of Kane’s vow after her law license was suspended last month to release all pornographic or offensive emails sent by public servants that her office had located.

Last week, Kane released a lengthy statement contradicting the state Supreme Court after it said it was “disturbed” by Eakins’ emails and claimed they had not had full access to the emails during a previous review.

The court’s press release earlier this month said they were submitting Eakins’ emails to an independent lawyer — Joseph Del Sole –forfurther review.

A lawyer hired by the Supreme Court reported seeing nothing inappropriate after reviewing the emails in 2014, and a complaint filed against Eakins at that time was dropped.

“After a thorough review of the facts regarding Supreme Court Justice Eakin’s private email account,” Kanesaid in a statement, “there is one clear and unequivocal conclusion: The JCB, Supreme Court Special Counsel Robert L. Byer, and the Supreme Court itself had access in 2014 to the emails reported by the Philadelphia Daily Newsand now in possession of Joseph Del Sole for review.”

Related link:Kane’s law license suspended

Eakins has said he is cooperating with the review.

Reports say he received two pornographic emails and one raciallyoffensive email.

A previous release in court documents of pornographic and racist emails precipitated the retirement of state Supreme Court justice Seamus McCaffery.

That releaseincluded emails that includedpornographic and racist pictures and jokes that were beingswapped by people including prosecutors at the Attorney General’s office, state law enforcement figures,and private attorneys.