The League of Women Voters files a federal lawsuit alleging that the PA Supreme Court upheld the lots Law in exchange for an illegal pay raise.

Casino-Free Philadelphia has often been suspicious about the objectivity of the PA Supreme Court on casino related cases. We are not alone.

On Monday, the League of Women Voters filed a lawsuit against former Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Ralph Cappy, claiming that the high court sold its votes on the constitutionality of Act 71, the state's gambling law, in exchange for an illegal pay hike from the legislature. Read the AP article here.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court and claims that Cappy secretly met with legislative leaders to negotiate a bargain: the Court would uphold the constitutionality of Act 71 (which was near and dear to the hearts of many legislators) if the legislature would pass a pay raise for more than 1000 judges, including the other Supreme Court Justices and himself.

If the allegations of the suit are true, this seriously brings even more into question the integrity and independence of Pennsylvania's Supreme Court. These allegations cast a darker shadow over the court's many pro-casino decisions, such as last year’s decision to knock our referendum off the ballot and the recent decisions stripping zoning power from the city. Many are concerned that this pro-casino trend will continue as the Court considers who has control of the riparian land adjacent to the SugarHouse site.

If you’d like to read the Complaint against Justice Cappy, click here.