Top Cop Won’t Resign in Email Scandal

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan will keep his job amidst the “porngate” scandal enveloping Harrisburg. | AP

A second state official has resigned after participating in the exchange of “racy emails” while working in the office of then-Attorney General Tom Corbett. Glenn Parno, a top lawyer in the Department of Environmental Protection, resigned after DEP Secretary Christopher Arbuzzo made his departure public.

AP reported that “no reason was given for Parno’s resignation,” but it came hours after Attorney General Kathleen Kane released a batch of redacted emails with the offensive content. “Parno, meanwhile, sent or replied to the sexual emails to his colleagues 10 times, by Kane’s count, sometimes with his own editorial comment,” the Patriot-News reports.

One person who will keep his job for now: State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan. Corbett is standing by his man for now, the Morning Call reports:

State police Commissioner Frank Noonan “did not participate in opening, originating, forwarding or replying to any message,” Corbett said, and must continue leading the Poconos manhunt for trooper slaying suspect Eric Frein.

The governor said Noonan’s account indicates he didn’t open, originate, forward or reply to any of the emails.

“It is important that Commissioner Noonan remain focused on the critical public safety mission he is leading in the manhunt for Eric Frein and that there is no disruption in the work underway in this case,” Corbett said.

The Morning Call, meanwhile, details some of the commentary that accompanied the racy images in the emails:

In one now-embarrassing string, for example, attorney Christopher Carusone praises the looks of the female model in a picture file bearing the subject line “Please help me in this…,” telling five recipients: “This chick is incredible.”

The next day, one of those recipients, whose name was also redacted in Thursday’s release, appears to compare the same model to a woman the members of this share-group all know.

“Definitely,” Abruzzo responds.

In another, Abruzzo volunteers to forward an email to a colleague whom he refers to as “the Ass-Man.” A minute later, he forwards the dirty picture to that friend, adding this editorial comment: “Yummy. Now don’t hurt your wife tonite.”

That last comment alone makes it official: This is the ickiest political scandal in recent Pennsylvania history.