The judge that presided over the public corruption trial of Westmoreland County Sheriff Jonathan Held defended his decision to not publicly release the names of the jurors who took part.
The Tribune-Review reports that Senior Common Pleas Court Judge Timothy Creany has submitted a seven-page opinion to the State Superior Court to keep the juror’s names under wraps until after the re-trial is over. The twelve on that jury will not be a part of the re-trial in any way. Held was accused of directing on-duty sheriff’s office staffers and deputies to perform campaign duties for his re-election campaign. Creany declared a mis-trial after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict. In his opinion, Creany said that revealing the names of the prior jury would have a negative impact on any incoming juries.
Held’s trial is postponed for now as Held has appealed, claiming charges should be dismissed.
