Office of Speaker Dennis M. O’Brien

Pennsylvania House of Representatives

139 Main Capitol Building, Harrisburg

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                        CONTACT:  Bill Patton

                                                                                                                                   717-787-4610

O’Brien praises Justices Cappy, Castille

HARRISBURG, Sept. 11 – Speaker of the House Dennis O’Brien said that Supreme Court Chief Justice Ralph Cappy will leave a lasting legacy on Pennsylvania’s judiciary, marked by modernization of the state courts.

“In almost 18 years on the Supreme Court, the last five years as chief justice, Ralph Cappy has been a leader in pushing for greater openness, better procedures and the computerization of millions of state and county court records across Pennsylvania,” O’Brien said.

O’Brien is excited by the pending elevation of Justice Ronald Castille to lead the high court. Castille is a former Philadelphia district attorney now in his 14^th year on the Supreme Court. He and O’Brien have been friends since the late 1970s.

“Ron Castille’s coming promotion is great news,” O’Brien said. “He’s a former prosecutor who is always sensitive to the needs of crime victims. And as a Philadelphian, he’s very familiar with the special challenges faced by the judicial system in our largest city.

“His entire life has been about public service. I congratulate Ron Castille on his well-deserved honor of becoming Pennsylvania’s next Chief Justice. It’s a huge responsibility but I know he is up to the job.”

Describing his high regard for Chief Justice Cappy, O’Brien cited a number of Cappy initiatives, including the issuance in 2006 of the “State of the Commonwealth’s Courts” report, the first of its kind in 20 years.

In 2003, Cappy directed counties to collect and submit data on medical malpractice case filings and outcomes. O’Brien said the data greatly helped legislators to clarify the complex medical malpractice issue.

As chief justice, Cappy oversaw several milestones in a statewide judicial computerization effort that began 20 years ago.

“The dockets of every common pleas court in Pennsylvania now can be accessed online. This helped law enforcement become more efficient at capturing fugitives who are wanted on outstanding warrants,” O’Brien said.

 “Ralph Cappy’s departure at this time comes as a surprise, but the court will continue to function efficiently because of the many changes he implemented. The chief justice oversees not only the Supreme Court, but the entire judicial system of Pennsylvania,” O’Brien said.

“As the chief executive of this huge enterprise, Ralph Cappy performed admirably.”

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