Broadly, his job will be to stabilize the office pending Gov. Tom Wolf’s nomination of a replacement for Kane, or the arrival of a new attorney general who will be chosen in the November general election.
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“You cannot expect a person in four months to undo the havoc that has wreaked over three years in that office”, former Attorney General Linda Kelly said Thursday, “but if anybody can start to do it, Bruce can”.
Castor, a Republican, has not received any pledges of support from Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf or the state’s top lawmakers.
The governor also said that, based on his talks with Senate leaders in both parties, he was confident that Beemer “will be confirmed expeditiously”. The governor has the authority to appoint Kane’s replacement, with two-thirds approval of the Republican-controlled Senate, for the five months until a successor picked in the November election is sworn in January 17.
Castor, a Republican, served two terms as the district attorney in Montgomery County, in suburban Philadelphia, before becoming a county commissioner. In announcing the hiring, Kane said Castor would perform duties that she could not because of the suspension of her law license. She steamrolled into office in 2012, the first Democrat to ever be elected to the office, as well as the first woman elected.
Morrow, a former political consultant for Kane, testified in Montgomery County that he served as a courier for Kane as she leaked documents pertaining to a 2009 grand jury investigation to a Philadelphia Daily News reporter. “He has the respect of the employees of the Office of the Attorney General, and I have no doubt that he will make this transition seamless and smooth”.
Beemer, once a top deputy of Kane’s, resigned in June to become inspector general.
On Monday night, Kane was found guilty on every count against her.
Though Beemer was Kane’s handpicked top deputy, their relationship turned icy after it became known that he was to testify against her at her perjury trial. He must still get the approval of two-thirds of the Senate. But Wolf’s office said no decision had been made about whether to nominate a placeholder.
Kane was convicted of leaking secret criminal files and then lying about it.
Kane, a first-term Democrat who had never held elected office, enjoyed a brief honeymoon period in 2013 before her agency descended into chaos as she feuded with officials inside and outside the department.
Castor is expected to be sworn in Wednesday afternoon.
He also testified that Kane rejected his request to investigate the leak, saying it was “not a big deal” without disclosing that she was behind it.
After hearing days of testimony about petty feuds, political intrigue and “cloak-and-dagger” machinations, Judge Wendy Demchick-Alloy called Kane a flight risk and ordered her to surrender her passport.
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A juror in Kane’s trial, Adam Galasso, said in an interview that Beemer’s testimony was key.
