Attorney Ernest Preate Jr. of Scranton, PA; convicted felon

The state of Pennsylvania provided Ernest D. Preate Jr. with a law license in 1969 after he graduated from the University of Pittsburgh Law School.

The Office of Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) found Ernie guilty of the following misconduct, all of which took place while he held the position of the District Attorney of Lackawanna County.

• Pled guilty to one felony count of mail fraud
• Solicited illegal cash contributions of $20,000 from 19 owner/operators of videopoker gambling machines in and around Lackawanna County
• To conceal the illegal $20,000 payments from authorities and voting public, Ernie caused false and materially misleading campaign finance reports to be filed under oath with the Pennsylvania Bureau of Elections
• Repeatedly lied to public until forced to admit guilty after being arrested and indicted
• Sentenced to 14 months in prison

As a direct consequence of his misconduct, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court punished Ernie by gifting him with a complimentary stayed 5-year suspension of his law license.

As we speak (ca. March 2018) Ernie practices at 204 Wyoming Avenue in Scranton, Pennsylvania.