The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania began in 1684 as the Provincial Court, and casual references to it as the "Supreme Court" of Pennsylvania were made official in 1722 upon its reorganization as an entity separate from the control of the colonial governor.
Robert Nelson Cornelius Nix Jr. served as the chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court from 1984 to 1996. Nix was the first African-American Chief Justice of any state's highest court, and the first African American to be elected to statewide office in Pennsylvania. He served as a justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania for 24 years, 12 of which were as chief justice, and was a prominent figure in Pennsylvania law and public service for more than three decades.
The office of the Pennsylvania State Constable is a municipally elected, sworn Law Enforcement Officer throughout the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.
The Superior Court of Pennsylvania is one of two Pennsylvania intermediate appellate courts. It is based in Harrisburg.
Russell M. Nigro is a former justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. He first ran on the Democratic ticket in 1995. He ran for retention in 2005 but lost, thus making him the first Supreme Court Justice to lose a retention vote since such elections were first held in 1968.
Bump stocks or bump fire stocks are gun stocks that can be used to assist in bump firing, the act of using the recoil of a semi-automatic firearm to fire cartridges in rapid succession.
In the United States, open carry refers to the practice of visibly carrying a firearm in public places, as distinguished from concealed carry, where firearms cannot be seen by the casual observer. To "carry" in this context indicates that the firearm is kept readily accessible on the person, within a holster or attached to a sling. Carrying a firearm directly in the hands, particularly in a firing position or combat stance, is known as "brandishing" and may constitute a serious crime, but is not the mode of "carrying" discussed in this article.
The First Judicial District is the judicial body governing the county of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It consists of the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County and the Philadelphia Municipal Court.
Thomas G. Saylor is a former chief justice and associate justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and a former judge of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania.
The Gun Court is the branch of the Jamaican judicial system that tries criminal cases involving firearms. The court was established by Parliament in 1974 to combat rising gun violence, and empowered to try suspects in camera, without a jury. The Supreme Court, Circuit Courts, and Resident Magistrate's Courts function as Gun Courts whenever they hear firearms cases. There is also a Western Regional Gun Court in Montego Bay. Those convicted by the Gun Court are imprisoned in a dedicated prison compound at South Camp in Kingston. Until 1999, the Gun Court sessions were also held in the same facility.
The Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania is the unified state court system of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The Allegheny County Sheriff's Office is a law enforcement agency that serves Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and is the largest sheriff's office in the state. The ACSO serves as a local arm of the Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System in a number of roles, including: court security, writ services, sales, prisoner transportation, issuing of firearm licenses and execution of warrants. A primary responsibility of the office is fugitive apprehension. The Sheriff's Office also assists local law enforcement agencies with emergency and incident response on an as-needed basis, most notably through the use of trained police dogs.
Gun laws in Pennsylvania regulate the sale, possession, and use of firearms and ammunition in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the United States.
Lawrence Samuel Krasner is an American lawyer who is the 26th District Attorney of Philadelphia. Elected to the position in 2017, Krasner was one of the first in the United States to run as a self-described "progressive prosecutor". He campaigned on a platform to reform elements of the criminal justice system, including reduced incarceration.
Steve Brantley Spence is a convicted felon and former college football linebacker from East Carolina University. On December 3, 2018, Spence was taken into custody while brandishing two handguns on the grounds of Ben L. Smith High School in Greensboro, North Carolina. Earlier that morning, Spence had strangled a romantic partner in Virginia Beach, Virginia, who survived, and stolen her SUV. He drove this vehicle to the high school, where he planned to murder another former partner. Arresting officers recovered a document which detailed plans to kill individuals across at least four states. On December 8, 2020, Spence was convicted on federal charges of interstate domestic violence and use by brandishing of a firearm to commit the same. He was sentenced to a total of 114 months in the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
The 2020 Libertarian National Convention delegates selected the Libertarian Party nominees for president and vice president in the 2020 United States presidential election. Primaries were held, but were preferential in nature and did not determine delegate allocation. The convention was originally scheduled to be held from May 21 to May 25 at the JW Marriott Austin luxury hotel in downtown Austin, Texas. On April 26, all reservations at the JW Marriott Austin were canceled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving the convention oversight committee to seek another venue for a possible July date.
Black Guns Matter is an organization aimed at educating African Americans about gun culture in the United States, primarily around defending Second Amendment rights. The organization is led by Maj Toure, who founded it in 2016. Black Guns Matter has hosted workshops in multiple cities to teach the basics of firearm safety, U.S. gun laws, and conflict resolution.
The 2023 Pennsylvania elections took place on November 7, 2023, to fill judicial positions, allow judicial retention votes, and fill numerous county, local and municipal offices, the most prominent being the Mayor of Philadelphia. The necessary primary elections were held on May 16, 2023. In addition, special elections for legislative vacancies could be held at various times in 2023.
Joshua Siegel is an American politician who is a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. A member of the Democratic Party, he represents the 22nd district, which contains parts of Allentown and Salisbury Township.
Gary Stuart Glazer is a retired American judge who served for 30 years in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia, part of Pennsylvania's First Judicial District. During that time, he also served as an administrative judge in two other courts within the First Judicial District. As a Common Pleas judge, Glazer served in the criminal and civil divisions, and was Supervising Judge of Philadelphia's Commerce Case Management Program from 2018 to 2021. In response to the Philadelphia Traffic Court scandal of 2011, Pennsylvania's Supreme Court appointed Glazer as Administrative Judge of the Traffic Court in 2011 to reverse many years of institutional corruption, while still maintaining his role as a full-time Court of Common Pleas judge. Glazer also became known for innovative court programs within the Commerce Court. He has also been very involved in lecturing on the American legal system outside the United States.
