Jailtime For Grandma Who Lied; Vera Carroll Worked In Delco DA's Office
NORRISTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- A former secretary in the Delaware County district attorney's office is headed to jail for at least two months for lying to a state grand jury to protect her grandson, who was being investigated for two robberies nearly two years ago.
Montgomery County Judge Steven O'Neill said Vera Carroll, 59, went to great lengths to protect her grandson, but that what she did was illegal and shakes the foundation of a society that believes in justice.
Now, the Chester, Pa. woman has been sentenced to two to 23 months in jail for two felony counts of perjury.
Prosecutors say Carroll leaked confidential information to her grandson's attorney and then lied about doing so.
"She, above all people," says deputy attorney general John Flannery. "She used her position in a way to disclose information to the benefit of her grandson to her grandson's attorney involving two robbery cases."
He says that information included the names and addresses of witnesses.
Carroll took full responsibility, blaming it on stress.
The sentencing was punctuated by a profanity-laced outburst from Carroll's son, who called the judge, the prosecutor, and the justice system "racist."
Reported by Brad Segall, KYW Newsradio 1060
