Joan Orie Melvin is a Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. She was born in Pittsburgh to a prominent Western Pennsylvania political family. Her sister, Jane Orie, is a Republican state senator, who until April 2010 served as the Majority Whip.
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She attended the University of Notre Dame, where she received a B.A. in Economics in 1978, and Duquesne Law, where she was awarded a J.D. in 1981.
From 1981 to 1985, Judge Orie Melvin served as corporate counsel and was engaged in a private law practice, concentrating in civil litigation before she was appointed Magistrate for the City of Pittsburgh Municipal Courts in 1985. She was then named Chief Magistrate in 1987 for the City of Pittsburgh Municipal Courts. In this position, Judge Melvin established Pennsylvania’s first Domestic Violence Court.
In 1990, Judge Melvin was appointed Judge to a vacancy on the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas and later was elected to a full term in 1991. There, she served in the civil, criminal, and family divisions. She was elected to the Pennsylvania Superior Court in 1997 and won retention in 2007. She lost a bid for Supreme Court to Max Baer in 2003. She was elected to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 2009.
On April 7, 2010, two of Justice Joan Orie Melvin's sisters, State Senator Jane Orie, 48, and Janine Orie, 55, were arrested and charged with theft of services and criminal conspiracy following a Pittsburgh grand jury investigation. The sisters are accused of using Senator Jane Orie's senate staff and senate office resources to help run the recent successful 2009 Pennsylvania Supreme Court judicial campaign of Justice Joan Orie Melvin. Senator Jane Orie has relinquished her duties as Republican Senate whip pending the charges being heard.
The grand jury report describes in detail the testimony of numerous grand jury witnesses who admitted working significant hours on Justice Joan Orie Melvin's 2009 and 2003 judicial campaigns while they were on duty and being paid to work at the State Senate offices of Senator Jane Orie.
She has six children: Casey, Patricia, John and Janine (twins), Bridget, and Danielle. Casey graduated from Princeton University in 2010. Patricia and Janine currently attend Brown University and participate on the varsity softball team. John attends Dartmouth College.
Judge Melvin was plaintiff in the case of Melvin v. Doe (575 Pa. 264), in which she sued to uncover the identity of the anonymous blogger "Grant Street 99," who posted allegations that Melvin had engaged in misconduct by lobbying then-Governor Tom Ridge to appoint an attorney for a judicial seat. The case was appealed to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, which ruled that anonymous political speech is protected by the First Amendment. [1]
| Pennsylvania Justice of the Supreme Court Election 2003 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Max Baer | 1,284,846 | 51.9 | ||
| Republican | Joan Orie Melvin | 1,192,952 | 48.1 | ||
| Pennsylvania Justice of the Supreme Court Election 2009 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Jack Panella | 830,277 | 46.7 | ||
| Republican | Joan Orie Melvin | 946,121 | 53.3 | ||
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