Ex-North Wales Lawyer, Montco GOP Chief, Disbarred Amidst Charges

Former Montgomery County Republican Committee Chairman Robert Kerns has agreed to be disbarred after a vote by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s Disciplinary Board, according to reports.

In November of 2014, Kerns, 67, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor indecent assault charge.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Kerns, of North Wales, will serve two years of probation and must register as a sex offender for life. He will serve no prison time.

Kerns, a former chairman of the Republican Party in Montgomery County, knew that he “could not successfully defend himself against the charges of professional misconduct,” a notice filed to the Supreme Court stated, according to Philly.com.

Kerns had faced three counts of indecent assault, two counts of aggravated indecent assault, one count of rape, one count of sexual assault and one count of simple assault, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office said.

He had been accused of the rape and sexual assault of a paralegal who worked at his law firm in Blue Bell. The disbarment Monday marks the end of a complicated saga dating to November 2013 when charges were first filed against the former GOP official.

He resigned his party chairmanship on Nov. 14, 2013.

Charges against Kerns were dropped in March of 2014 after Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Ferman said lab results had been misread.

At issue was the misinterpretation of a piece of evidence, and the fact that the misinterpretation was presented to a Grand Jury.

“The Grand Jury relied upon that inaccurate evidence to make its charging recommendations,” the District Attorney’s Office said at the time.

Members of the Grand Jury were told that the drug zolpidem, or Ambien, was found in the complainant’s system, when in fact no trace of the drug was found, the District Attorney’s Office said.

The Grand Jury apparently gave significant weight to that incorrect evidence when deciding whether to hand down indictments.

“While the admission of inaccurate information to the Grand Jury was unintentional, it regretfully happened. Upon discovering the issue, my office immediately took steps to investigate, acknowledge and take corrective actions in the matter,” Ferman said at the time.

In dropping the charges, Ferman referred the case to Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane. Kane refiled charges in April 2014, ultimately leading to the no contest plea from Kerns seven months later.