CRAWFORD COUNTY, Pa. — Former state Sen. Jane Orie emerged a free woman from the state prison in Crawford County a little after 6 a.m. Sunday, 20 months after being sentenced on public corruption charges, a spokeswoman said.
The Republican and former majority whip served her time at the all-female prison in Cambridge Springs.
Allegheny County Common Pleas President Judge Jeffrey A. Manning sentenced Orie, 52, of McCandless to 21/2 to 10 years in June 2012 for using her legislative staff to campaign for her sister, former state Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin.
The jury convicted a third sister, Janine Orie, 59, of McCandless for helping her sisters commit their crimes.
A jury in May convicted Melvin, 57, of Marshall for using her Superior Court staff and resources to campaign for a seat on the state's highest court in 2003 and 2009.
All three are appealing their convictions.
This article was written by Channel 11’s news exchange partners at TribLIVE.