Kane's bid to quash charges rejected on procedural grounds

Man convicted of raping child gets up to 70 years in prison

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Lawyers for Attorney General Kathleen Kane have 10 days to refile a motion seeking to throw out her criminal charges, a judge said Tuesday, ruling that the earlier filing failed to meet standards for criminal procedure. Montgomery County Judge Wendy Demchik-Alloy struck the April 27 filing, which had sought to quash perjury, obstruction and other counts against Kane because, it said, she is the victim of "selective and vindictive prosecution." A new filing must adhere to rules of criminal procedure that lay out how motions must be organized into paragraphs that state the grounds for the motion, the facts that support each ground, and the types of relief or order requested, Demchik-Alloy said. Montgomery County prosecutors would have 10 days after that to respond. Kane's lawyer, Gerald Shargel, did not immediately return a call seeking comment. Kane was charged last August and accused of leaking secret grand jury information to a reporter to embarrass two former state prosecutors and lying about it under oath. In the April 27 filing, her lawyers said "leaks of grand jury material are not uncommon," but prosecutions are "extraordinary." Kane, they said, was singled out for investigation and prosecution because of efforts by prosecutors with "personal antagonism" toward Kane. Prosecutors say the claims are frivolous and want the judge to reject them. Trial is scheduled for Aug. 8.