| By Kevin Zwick Staff Reporter Capitolwire HARRISBURG (Aug. 30) – The Senate on Tuesday unanimously confirmed career prosecutor Bruce Beemer as Attorney General, hoping to steady the office after a turbulent few years under its former head, Kathleen Kane. Beemer, of the Pittsburgh area, told the Senate Judiciary Committee he will “endeavor to restore a sense of honor and integrity to the office, where we have struggled with that over the last couple of years.” The Senate swiftly confirmed Beemer to replace Bruce Castor, a Kane appointee and former Montgomery County district attorney. Castor has been leading the office following Kane’s conviction of perjury, obstruction and other charges stemming from an orchestrated leak of grand jury material to a Philadelphia newspaper to smear a political foe. Beemer’s confirmation moved through the Judiciary and Rules and Executive Nominations committees Tuesday before the full chamber vote. He faces a slew of challenges when he takes the helm, including a handful of personnel lawsuits against the office. Sen. Judy Schwank, D-Berks, the only senator to offer floor remarks, brought up another issue confronting Beemer: she implored Beemer not to drop the review of lewd emails which were unearthed by Kane. “This problem has to be fixed immediately to help restore the confidence of the people of Pennsylvania in the Office of Attorney General, a process needs to be place to review the report and the individuals who participated in this activity, and a program needs to be in place to prevent such attitudes from taking root in the future,” Schwank said. She called the issue “a festering wound that must be cleaned before our justice system can heal.” Gov. Tom Wolf hailed the confirmation vote, noting Beemer has the “unique experience and skillset as a prosecutor, lawyer and administrator to begin the healing necessary to put the Attorney General’s office back on track.” Beemer started his legal career in the Allegheny County District Attorney’s office as a homicide prosecutor. He had a short stint in private practice before joining the staff of Attorney General Linda Kelly, who replaced Tom Corbett when he was elected governor. He stayed on through Kane’s transition in 2013. He became Kane’s top aide, but their relationship strained after he testified against her in a secret grand jury proceeding investigating a leak of confidential material from the Office of Attorney General. Beemer again testified against Kane at a Senate hearing that was examining whether she could perform the duties of office with a suspended law license. He served as her top deputy until Wolf appointed him Inspector General in 2016. “He is trusted by the rank-and-file members of the office and understands better than anyone what must be fixed to restore the public trust,” Wolf said. -30- |
