A Nation of laws, or just a notion about the law?

Last Friday (December 2nd), I had a chance to see the intersection of our Nation
of Laws, and what happens when a local District Attorney has a Notion of Laws.  The back story is short, but it’s crucial to the issue. A psychologist, Dr. Gallo, was travelling near his home in the Laurel Highlands, peacefully traversing a familiar road, when another motorist, one Mr. Pirl, took offense to Dr. Gallo’s driving too slowly. Lest you think I’m making this up, a local TV station’s website offered the following:

“A road rage confrontation ended in gunfire and now both drivers are facing charges. Charles Gallo,63, started as the victim, but wound up in handcuffs. He was driving on Route 381 in Ligonier Township at about 10 p.m. Sunday when he called 911 to report an erratic driver who was riding his bumper. The situation
quickly escalated when 39-year-old Patrick Pirl passed him and then slowed to
15mph in front of him. Pearl then pulled over and cut Gallo off, turning so violently that it left tire marks on the road. “I think at this point you have a pretty good understanding I think on both sides,” Ligonier Township Police Chief Michael Matrunics said. “It’s both actor and victim. It’s how we’re kind of looking at it at this point because they’re both filed on actions against each other.” Gallo told police he had no place to go and felt threatened so he pulled out his glock
semiautomatic weapon and fired two shots at Pirl’s truck, one striking him in
the arm. Pirl told police he knew he was in the wrong but didn’t know why he did what he did. He had been drinking at Bull’s Tavern and had a blood alcohol level of more than twice the legal limit. The man who fired the gun was taken to jail on $50,000 straight cash bond. The other man is free on an unsecured bond.”

For those of you who don’t regularly keep up with the laws of the Commonwealth regarding use of lethal force, Act 10, signed by Governor Corbett over the summer, and now law, is referred to as the Castle Doctrine. Actually, Castle has been in place on a limited basis since 1988, but the improved version extends one’s right to self-defense to their deck, patio, porch, driveway, vehicle, and “anywhere you may lawfully be.” It’s also quite clear that deadly force should only be used when faced with a certain possibility of grave bodily injury or death. Lethal force is
never to be used to protect property.

What went un-reported in the news was that Dr. Gallo made 3 calls to 911, and after firing his handgun at Mr. Pirl’s truck, defusing the situation, he drove to the
center of town in Ligonier, with Pirl following him. Both were detained by police at that point. What is also alluded to, but not reported, was that Pirl passed Gallo on the roadway, made a 180 degree turn in front of him, and used his vehicle as a deadly weapon placing Dr. Gallo in fear for his life. As the news reported, Pirl was released on an unsecured bond; not bad considering his blood alcohol level was more than .16, and he admitted to acting wrongfully.

Dr. Gallo, on the other hand, despite the protections under the law provided by Act 10, was cuffed and stuffed into a police cruiser, and forced to post a $50,000.00
straight bond. That’s cash, coin of the realm. No 10% here, oh no, 50 grand
straight up. What’s wrong with this picture? The victim is forced to cover his lawful actions with a cash bond, while the criminal walks away with a slap on the wrist. This is inherently wrong, and points to the capricious nature of the District Attorney, Mr. Peck.  Dr.Gallo was also charged with attempted murder, prohibited offensive weapon, reckless endangerment, assault with a deadly weapon and some other charges. The question quickly becomes why a drunken driver, using his vehicle as a 4000 pound bludgeon, walked home, and why was Dr. Gallo so viciously and perhaps even maliciously charged?

The Pennsylvania District Attorney’s Association doesn’t like Castle Doctrine. I don’t like stop signs, but I do recognize they are safety signs, and I obey them. Westmoreland County District Attorney John Peck, District Attorney

2 N. Main Street
Suite 206
Greensburg, PA 15601

Phone: 724.830.3949

FAX: 724.830.3290 Email: daoffice@co.westmoreland.pa.us (just in case you’d like to drop him a nicely worded note telling him how you feel about adherence to the law) has what he calls “serious reservations” about Castle Doctrine. In this writer’s eye, he should step down at once, because his reservations are at the core of the intersection of law and opinion. He lost his objectivity, and mounted a challenge to Act 10. Indeed, this was the first challenge to Act 10 in the
Commonwealth.

Dr. Gallo was put through the legal wringer, and all signs pointed towards DA Peck making a mockery of Act 10 at Dr. Gallo’s expense. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Dec 2 at District Magistrate Denise Thiel’s office in Ligonier. She would decide on whether it would be appropriate to have Dr. Gallo bound over for
trial. Some 50 to 60 folks showed up in support of Dr. Gallo. Some, like myself,
were members of Firearms Owners Against Crime, a registered Pennsylvania PAC
that asks legislators to pass laws to prevent what happened to Dr. Gallo from
happening to you. Our chairman co-authored the Castle Doctrine, and it only
took 8 years to have it become law. Dr. Gallo was put through significant
monetary and emotional distress, regardless, due to one man’s “reservations”
about the law.

After several hours of debate and negotiations between Dr. Gallo’s attorney and the representative from the District Attorney’s office, Act 10 prevailed, and all
charges against Dr. Gallo were dismissed. A hearing was not even necessary. Mr.
Pirl, on the other hand, faces quite a few charges, and he’ll soon learn the
truth about our system of jurisprudence.

So, what good is a story without a moral? The moral of this story is that even law abiding citizens can be swept up into a vortex of pain, expense, and distress if the
county DA doesn’t like a particular law. If you value your right to self-defense, make an informed decision the next time you vote. And above all, if you are maliciously charged with an offense that doesn’t exist, stand your ground. Do not waver. Dr. Gallo, at the end of the day, is a man of principle and fortitude, and he would not simply roll over and play dead because of the capricious actions of a public servant with an attitude. You all owe him a debt of gratitude for making certain that the first challenge to YOUR right to self-defense upheld Commonwealth statute, Act 10, the Castle Doctrine.