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Law360 (March 30, 2021, 8:27 PM EDT) -- Two Pittsburgh residents were charged Tuesday with gluing the doors shut at three Pennsylvania judges' offices after failing to get enough people to stage planned demonstrations against evictions, the Allegheny County Sheriff's Office said.
Sheriff's deputies served arrest warrants on Jacob Klinger, 27, and Brandon Orozco, 31, in connection with the Nov. 12, 2020, incidents in which three magisterial district judges had their district office front doors sealed shut with spray-foam insulation, epoxy in their keyholes and bike locks between the handles on the offices with double-doors, the sheriff's office said. A third suspect, 26-year-old Kevin Kiley of Munhall, Pennsylvania, was arrested Nov. 13.
"At each office, the suspects sealed the entryway door(s) with spray foam insulation and the keyholes were filled with an epoxy type glue," the sheriff's office said in a statement. "In addition to the damage, there were signs posted stating, 'evictions are violence.'"
Each defendant was charged with institutional vandalism, criminal mischief and obstructing the administration of law enforcement. Klinger and Orozco were also charged with conspiracy.
Kiley was released on a $2,500 unsecured bond the day of his arrest. Klinger and Orozco were released on nonmonetary bonds Tuesday.
The Allegheny County Sheriff's Office said the men had struck the offices of Magisterial District Judges Bruce Boni in McKees Rocks, Thomas Caulfield in Forest Hills and Ralph Kaiser in Baldwin on Nov. 12, using similar tactics at each location.
"I got in to work at about a quarter to seven … and saw they had epoxied and caulked everything. I couldn't even fit my key in the door," Judge Kaiser told Law360 on Tuesday.
Staff from Baldwin Borough came with a grinding tool to remove a bike lock from the door and reopen Judge Kaiser's court, and the judge said he was able to resume the day's work with only a little delay.
A fourth office, that of Magisterial District Judge Richard King in Pittsburgh's Carrick neighborhood, was allegedly targeted, but the group was nearly caught by police in Baldwin and didn't carry out the plan for Judge King's office, the sheriff's office said.
"Originally the three planned to protest evictions in front of magistrate's offices, but soon realized they did not have enough volunteers," the sheriff said in the statement. "Upon realizing the lack of support, they decided to vandalize the aforementioned offices."
Magisterial district judges in Pennsylvania are the lowest level of the state court system, hearing small claims, landlord-tenant disputes, traffic citations and preliminary hearings to determine if criminal cases have enough evidence to advance to the Court of Common Pleas. Their offices and courtrooms are usually located in the communities they serve, rather than at the county courthouse.
Allegheny County courts have been accepting the filing of new eviction cases during the pandemic, but have been postponing eviction hearings for cases where the federal Centers for Disease Control moratorium on evictions for nonpayment of rent applies. If the CDC moratorium doesn't apply, magistrate judges will hold an initial hearing and can give a tenant time to apply for rent relief programs.
Judge Kaiser said he believed he was targeted because his district is a hot spot for eviction filings at two major apartment communities, one with 1,050 units and another with 350 units. But he said the county has been working with renters to educate them on the eviction moratorium and the availability of rental assistance during the pandemic.
Deputies served search warrants on Orozco and Klinger's homes, Klinger's vehicle and a safe in Klinger's bedroom, the sheriff's office said. They found "four cans of Great Stuff foam insulation, a spray application nozzle, two containers of JB Weld Plastic Bonder, and three Loctite Threadlocker Red 271 [adhesives]," the statement said.
Kiley's preliminary hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, Klinger's for April 14 and Orozco's for April 20.
Klinger, Judge Boni and a representative of Allegheny County Court administration declined to comment Tuesday. Judge Caulfield, Orozco and the attorney listed for Kiley did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Kiley is represented by Justin Thomas Romano of Attisano & Romano LLC.
Klinger is represented by Turahn Jenkins of the Law Office of Turahn L. Jenkins.
Counsel information for Orozco and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was not immediately available.
The cases are Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Klinger, case number CR-0000069-2021, in the court of Magisterial District Judge Thomas P. Caulfield; Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Orozco, case number CR-0000097-2021, in the court of Magisterial District Judge Ralph E. Kaiser; and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Kiley, case number CR-0000357-2020, in the court of Magisterial District Judge Michael W. Thatcher.
--Editing by Amy Rowe.
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