Many adults from Chester County have read the controversial issues under James P. MacElree II such as DA MacElree​ declining to press charges against a police officer who reportedly struck an individual in the forehead with a nightstick in the back of an ambulance causing the individual who had been struck in the forehead with a police officer's nightstick to die from a brain hemmorage...  Or, the ability of the Ku Klux Klan to march through Chester County's "County Seat", West Chester, PA with police protection while MacElree was District Attorney.

     MacElree's role in Chester County's government may have changed over the years but MacElree's propensity for being the subject of questionable conduct has not.  As President Judge, MacElree landed Chester County in Federal Court for refusing to stop misconduct involving the Chester County Court Reporter's Office refusing to provide court transcripts needed for pending court cases. The law suit in Federal Court also states MacElree threatened an individual for emailing complaints about judicial misconduct with jail time/fines and Judge MacElree secretly sent the MacElree Harvey law firm a "bcc" copy of a complaint sent to Judge MacElree against a MacElree Harvey attorney while Judge MacElree claimed "I have no position in or relationship with the MacElree Harvey law firm" to the individual who made the complaint.

     MacElree's defenses to the conspiracy case protect his personal assets but leave liability upon Chester County, and of course Chester County's tax payers.  MacElree claims to be protected from law suits with absolute judicial immunity even if his actions are malicious, corrupt, in excess of his authority or committed during an alleged conspiracy.  Unfortunately for tax payers, in addition to the legal costs of defending judges from misconduct, the Supreme Court has specifically held that municipalities have no immunity from damages flowing from their constitutional violations.  So even in the event that a judge is found to be immune from a law suit the judicial immunity does not extend to a county, leaving the judge's misconduct for tax payers to pay.          Moreover, a continued adherence to an approach that a municipality knew or should known has failed to prevent tortious conduct by employees may establish the conscious disregard for the consequences of their action - the ‘deliberate indifference’ - necessary to trigger municipal liability.

      Don't miss next issue's special report on Chester County's fight in the United States Supreme Court to prevent PUBLIC information from being obtained, more than 5 years after MacElree refused to stop the Chester County Court Reporter's Office from withholding public records needed for pending cases, tax payers are still paying to defend MacElree.