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The state Supreme Court on Friday afternoon denied the Allegheny County district attorney's request to extend a stay on a ruling that declared unconstitutional language in the state's second-degree murder sentencing framework, setting the stage for a legislative fight and many county murder case reviews.
The action came eight days after Allegheny DA Stephen Zappala filed a petition seeking an extension of the original 120-day stay on the ruling, issued four months earlier. The majority of the justices on Friday denied the request, but two – Kevin Dougherty and Sallie Updyke Mundy – disagreed with the majority.
The denial throws a cloud of uncertainty around the status of life sentences pertaining to second-degree murder being served by inmates around the state. More than 1,000 cases could be involved.
"We are disappointed, but on the other hand we are hoping this decision will force the Legislature to take action" and come up with new sentencing language, said Berks County District Attorney John Adams, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association. "The fact that the Legislature has not acted is a detriment to the safety of our communities."
Some elected leaders have raised alarms that hundreds of inmates convicted of felony murder could start seeking release. Others have said the process will take considerable time.
The original March ruling was stayed by the Supreme Court for 120 days in order to give the Legislature time to put in place a new approach. That created a deadline of July 24.
In late June and early July, the main focus of lawmakers appeared to be the state budget, which was approved on July 12. After its passage, they left Harrisburg.
The Democratic-controlled House returned for an unusual late July session day last week, but made major changes to a bill that had cleared the Republican-controlled Senate before once again heading home. Without passage of the same language by both chambers, a bill cannot be signed by the governor.
In the dissenting opinion issued Friday, Dougherty wrote that the court's March ruling "was a seismic event in criminal jurisprudence in Pennsylvania" and "upended decades of sentencing practice in this Commonwealth."
Dougherty said it appeared "the Legislature has made significant headway in responding to our opinion" and there does not appear to be "an irreconcilable legislative impasse." Lawmakers, he said, should "be afforded more time to complete their vital work" and get an additional 120 days.
Spokespersons for leaders in the House and Senate were not immediately available for comment late Friday afternoon.