Former Centre County DA Stacy Parks Miller asks Pa. Disciplinary Board to lift her suspension
Centre County’s disgraced former district attorney asked the agency that investigates and prosecutes wrongdoing by Pennsylvania lawyers to reinstate her from her yearlong suspension.
Stacy Parks Miller was suspended in February 2019 after the state Disciplinary Board found she developed a pattern of communicating ex parte by email and text messages with judges about the substance of cases.
She also created a fake Facebook identity that she and members of her office used to investigate suspected illegal activity. Some of her statements throughout the investigation “were not candid,” the board wrote in a January newsletter.
Parks Miller has long bemoaned the allegations lodged against her were deemed to be admitted after she and her attorney failed to respond before the deadline.
She was “disheartened” by the board’s finding, she wrote Thursday night in an emailed statement.
“Despite these disappointments, I was determined to accept it and make the most of this time. The last 40 weeks turned out to be amazing,” she wrote. “I have been able to travel, research and advocate for children, work with national networks, and get into the best shape of my life. I am totally refreshed and looking forward to stepping back into any courtroom to fight for my clients when the time comes.”
Her one year and one day long suspension is scheduled to expire March 11. She filed her request for reinstatement Jan. 28, saying she has the “moral qualifications, competency and learning in law” that is required for readmission.
She participated in 37 hours of legal education during her suspension, Parks Miller wrote in her 100-page petition. The suspension posed a “large financial strain,” she wrote.
“Petitioner is very remorseful for her conduct and the consequences her behavior and suspension caused her, her family, her friends, members of the bar and the profession at large,” she wrote. “... Petitioner was devastated that any actions by her as district attorney caused any erosion in the confidence in the Centre County legal system.”
If reinstated, Parks Miller wrote that she plans to be based in Centre County and devote a portion of her work to child advocacy and reform.
The board is set to review the petition, conduct an investigation and file a response within 60 days of Parks Miller’s filing.
After a series of hearings and filings, a committee is expected to issue a report and recommendation that will be ruled upon by the Disciplinary Board. That ruling will then be sent to the state Supreme Court for a final determination.
“Petitioner regrets her failure to adequately express her appreciation of her situation, her remorse and the larger effects known to her,” Parks Miller wrote. “Petitioner is committed to never making these mistakes again.”
Additional legal proceedings from Parks Miller’s time as district attorney are expected to continue, as her 2015 lawsuit against a former paralegal is still pending.
This story was originally published February 8, 2020 at 5:00 AM.