| features
|
A Chance Encounter with '97
Alumnus Edward A. Paskey
The
case was The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. William
Babner. Edward Paskey was the prosecutor.
[FULL
STORY BELOW - CLICK HERE]
|
|
|
|
Building News
The latest information about
the exciting construction plans for the Dickinson
School of law.
[CLICK
HERE]
|
|
|
|
Alumni Events
Learn all about our upcoming
Alumni events.
[CLICK
HERE]
|
|
|
Alumni News
Read about past events and
hear the latest news from Penn State's Dickinson Alumni.
[CLICK HERE]
|
|
| features |
A Chance
Encounter with ’97 Alumnus Edward A. Paskey
Edward A. Paskey '97 had been
a prosecutor for approximately three years before
he met William Babner.
In January 2000, Babner kidnapped two college
students, a male named Dan and female named
Danielle, at gunpoint in northern York County
while they were walking along the Susquehanna
River on a date. Babner placed Dan in the back
of his pick-up truck with his rottweiler and
kept Danielle in the cab with him at gun point.
He then drove them approximately 12 miles downstream
to a remote location along the river. After
repeatedly raping Danielle, Babner instructed
both of them to walk to the edge of the river.
He shot Danielle in the face and thigh. He shot
Dan in the face as well. He then rolled their
bodies into the river leaving them to die and
continued to fire at them as they floated down
stream. Two duck hunters found them floating
in the river and pulled them to safety. They
were both taken to York hospital where they
received extensive medical treatment and surgeries.
Both Dan and Danielle lived and testified against
Babner at trial in the summer of 2000.
|
 |
The case was The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
v. William Babner. Edward Paskey was the prosecutor.
"This was probably one of the most difficult cases
to prepare for," said Paskey. "First, we had a number
of expert witnesses to prepare for trial. In addition
to the forensic investigators who collected the evidence,
we presented experts in trauma surgery, oral surgery,
sexual assault examination, ballistics and tool marks
examination, tire impressions, serology and trace
evidence, and DNA," reported Paskey.
This case was the first time that experts from the
Pennsylvania State Police testified to results of
forensic examination of DNA utilizing Short Tandem
Repeat (STR) analysis, a relatively new technique
at the time. "We had every item of forensic evidence
a prosecutor could possibly want to try a case," explained
Paskey. "The only thing we didn't have was a video
tape of the event. But Dan and Danielle gave the jury
their account, which was better than a tape."
After a week and a half trial, Babner was convicted
on all counts, including two counts of attempted homicide,
two counts of kidnapping, multiple sexual offenses
and robbery. He was sentenced to 117 ½ to 235 years
in a state correctional institution, which at the
time was the longest sentence in a non-homicide case
in York County history.
 |
On June 22, 2006, The Investigators,
a television program on Court TV aired the program
"Chance Encounter" about this case for a documentary
on crimes that had occurred near a body of water.
The producers interviewed Paskey for the show
at his office in York. "They brought a production
crew to our firm and set up in one of our conference
rooms," said Paskey. "I thought the show went
well and was very pleased with the final production.
It was a testament to the teamwork of the investigators,
the prosecutors and the community. But, most importantly,
it portrayed Dan and Danielle not as victims,
but as survivors." |
Since the Babner trial, Paskey has been involved in
many other high-profile cases, including being a part
of the prosecution team assigned to the re-opening
of the investigation and eventual prosecution of the
1969 York Race Riot murders, which resulted in charges
being filed against the former York City mayor, Charlie
Robertson.
In April 2006, Paskey presented "Criminal Implications
of Physical and Sexual Abuse of Children" at a seminar
titled "Mandated Reporting: Who, How, Where and What
Happens" sponsored by the York County Child Abuse
Prevention Counsel, York County Office and State Representative
Stan Saylor. The seminar was attended by more than
150 individuals, including local judges, members of
law enforcement, probation officers, counselors, school
officials and other child advocates. It aired on PCN
a number of times.
Paskey continues to be very involved in the prevention
of child abuse in the community. Prior to becoming
first deputy, he was the head of the Crimes against
Children Unit for the York County District Attorney's
Office.
"Once you have prosecuted child abuse cases, the experience
never leaves you," he said. "It was one of the most
rewarding experiences of my life. People ask me all
of the time about how I could handle child abuse cases
for so long and listen to the stories of little children.
My answer is always the same: I tell them that I was
speaking for those who couldn't speak for themselves."
Paskey is currently a partner with the York law firm
Kagen, MacDonald & France, P.C. He practices primarily
in commercial and business litigation.
|
|
building news
One School, Two Locations, Serving
a Single Vision
Penn State University is investing approximately $100 million
in two new buildings for The Dickinson School of Law. One
building will be in Carlisle, PA; the other in State College,
PA, on Penn State's flagship University Park campus.
University
Park Groundbreaking Planned
The
Dickinson School of Law's University Park Groundbreaking Ceremony
will be held on Thursday, January 18, 2007, at 10:00 a.m.
The groundbreaking site is located on Park Avenue and Bigler
Road, University Park.
Learn more online by clicking
here
|
|
alumni events |
DSL at AALS
Penn State's Dickinson School
of Law will host a reception for alumni, faculty and
friends in conjunction with the annual meeting of
the Association of American Law Schools on January
5, 2007, in Washington, D.C.
The reception will be held from 6:30-8:00 p.m. at
the Hilton Washington and Towers Hotel, Georgetown
East, Concourse Level. The AALS is a non-profit association
of 166 law schools dedicated to the improvement of
the legal profession through legal education. The
meeting is the largest annual gathering of legal educators
in the world. All DSL alumni are cordially invited
to attend the reception.
Penn State International Law Review to celebrate
25th Anniversary
The Penn State International
Law Review will celebrate its 25th anniversary
with a panel discussion on "Finality and Enforceability
of International Arbitration Awards in Latin America."
The event, co-sponsored by the American Society of
International Law and the Consortium for Peace and
Ethics, will be held on December 15, 2006, at the
Tillar House, headquarters of the American Society
of International Law, in Washington, D.C. A lunch
will be offered at 11:30 a.m. and will be followed
by the panel from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. Registration
and lunch are free, and CLE credit is available upon
request.
The panel discussion will feature Penn State's Dickinson
School of Law professor Thomas E. Carbonneau, who
is generally regarded as one of the world's leading
experts on international commercial arbitration and
as an acknowledged expert on domestic arbitration.
He is the faculty director of Penn State's Institute
for Arbitration Law and Practice and the director
of the law school's McGill Faculty of Law Summer Program
in Montréal, Quebec, Canada. Professor Carbonneau
is the executive editor of the Latin American
Arbitration Report and editor-in-chief of the
World Arbitration and Mediation Report. He
has served as a member of the editorial board of La
Revue de L'Arbitrage and is the author of more than
a dozen highly acclaimed books and 75 scholarly articles.
Other panelists include Oliver J. Armas, Ronald Goodman
and Mary Helen Mourra. Armas is a partner in Thacher
Proffitt and specializes in complex domestic and international
arbitration and litigation cases. A large percentage
of his practice involves counseling clients on various
matters involving Latin America. Goodman is a partner
in Winston & Strawn's Washington, D.C. office and
is co-chair of its international arbitration practice
group. He concentrates his practice in international
arbitration and alternative dispute resolution, with
a focus on commercial, investor-state, project, energy
and construction matters. Mourra is the editor-in-chief
of the Latin American Arbitration Report. She has
extensive work experience in and ties to the Middle
East and Latin America, and from 2000 to 2005, she
was counsel to the Hariri Foundation in matters before
the United Nations. Penn State's Dickinson School
of Law professor Larry Backer will moderate the panel.
Professor Backer is a member of the American Law Institute
and the European Corporate Governance Institute, and
he has lectured in Brazil and Argentina.
To register, please complete our online form at http://www.dsl.psu.edu/forms/iljpanel.cfm
or e-mail Michael Bluto at mdb312@psu.edu
UP Groundbreaking Ceremony
Alumni are cordially invited
to The Dickinson School of Law's University Park Groundbreaking
Ceremony on Thursday, January 18, 2007, at 10:00 a.m.
The groundbreaking site is located on Park Avenue
and Bigler Road, University Park.
Graham B. Spanier, President of the Penn State University,
The Honorable Cynthia A. Baldwin, chair of the Pennsylvania
State University Board of Trustees, and Philip J.
McConnaughay, dean of The Dickinson School of Law,
will preside over the ceremony. A reception will follow
at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, Presidents
Hall. For your convenience, hotel rooms have been
placed on reserve at The Penn Stater at a special
reduced rate.
For reservations, please call (800) 233-7505 and reference
The Dickinson School of Law block of rooms; blocked
rooms will be available through December 17. Parking
will be available on the site of the Groundbreaking
Ceremony. Shuttles also will be available to and from
the ceremony site and will begin departing from the
Penn Stater hotel at 9:30 a.m.
Please RSVP by January 12 to Nicola Kiver at (814)
867-0411 or on-line at www.dsl.psu.edu.
Information on the Carlisle groundbreaking will be
forthcoming. |
|
alumni news
Penn State Dickinson Student Elected Secretary of NAPALSA
Penn State's Dickinson
School of Law student Jacqueline Calahong was elected
secretary of the National Asian Pacific Law Student
Association at the 18th Annual National Asian Pacific
American Bar Association Convention held November
9-12 in Philadelphia, PA.
Calahong, a first-year law student, is the 1L representative
of Penn State Dickinson's local chapter of APALSA.
Her one-year term as secretary of the national chapter
runs from November 2006 through November 2007. Calahong
graduated from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
and hopes to concentrate her legal studies in the
areas of international and environmental law.
NAPALSA, the first and oldest Asian Pacific American
law student organization, is dedicated to "promoting
education, leadership, community awareness, communication
and interaction amongst the various Asian Pacific
American law students across the country." More information
about NAPALSA including membership information can
be obtained by visiting www.napalsa.org
on the web.
Uncorking A Good Time
In
celebration of the Law School's new location at University
Park, this past October more than 130 students, faculty,
DSL alumni and distinguished guests gathered together
for a Wine Tasting at the Hintz Family Alumni Center,
University Park.
The event was sponsored by The Dickinson School of
Law Student Bar Association, the Blue and White Society,
and the Dickinson School of Law Alumni Office. The
event is the first of many opportunities for the Penn
State's Dickinson School of Law to build relationships
with the greater State College legal community.
Welcomes The Blue
& White Society
This past semester, The Dickinson
School of Law welcomed The Blue and White Society
to its array of organizations. The Blue & White Society
is the largest student organization at Penn State.
Blue & White Society members are student members of
the Penn State Alumni Association. The society helps
students find meaningful ways to connect and network
to Penn State students and alumni. Currently, DSL
has over 80 members involved and is growing rapidly.
This past fall, The Dickinson School of Law Blue &
White Society formed an executive board, and co-sponsored
a wine tasting event in State College, PA, as well
as a networking mixer with the Penn State School of
Medicine students in Harrisburg, PA. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
