ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Two former Allentown vice officers charged with rape, prostitution and other felonies remain free on bail after a hearing Thursday.
Jason Krasley, 47, and Evan Weaver, 45, were released this month after posting 10% of their $750,000 and $900,000 bail amounts, respectively.
But Lehigh County prosecutors filed an emergency petition asking a Lehigh County judge to revoke bail because they are facing potential life sentences.
The Pennsylvania Constitution is “clear. There’s no wiggle room there, as much as the defense would like there to be.”Assistant District Attorney Eric Dowdle
Krasley and Weaver worked together on the Allentown Police Department’s Vice and Intelligence Unit from 2011 to 2015.
Lehigh County authorities allege they forced a woman to perform sexual acts on them in exchange for not arresting her, among other charges.
The Pennsylvania Constitution has “clear, unmistakable language” that says defendants should not be released on bail if they could spend the rest of their lives in prison if convicted, Assistant District Attorney Eric Dowdle said Thursday in a courtroom packed with Weaver’s and Krasley’s families and attorneys.
That provision typically arises in criminal homicide cases but should be applied against Krasley and Weaver, who face life sentences if convicted of rape and involuntary servitude, Dowdle said.
‘No wiggle room here’
Neither charge carries a potential life sentence on its own, but state sentencing guidelines allow judges to impose them on defendants convicted of both, he said.
The state constitution is clear, Dowdle said.
“There’s no wiggle room there, as much as the defense would like there to be,” he said.
James Burke, Krasley’s attorney, argued that prosecutors are “masquerading” that sentencing enhancement as a bail restriction.
“They’re perfect bail candidates."Defense attorney Joshua Karoly about Jason Krasley and Evan Weaver
Weaver’s attorney, Joshua Karoly, said both men should not be deprived of their liberty based on allegations and not convictions.
“They’re perfect bail candidates,” Karoly said of Weaver and Krasley.
Weaver, of Weisenberg Township, was placed on administrative leave and an internal investigation is being updated, Allentown police officials have said.
Krasley, of Upper Milford Township, left the department in 2021. He was fired in November from his job as an investigator for the U.S. Center for SafeSport.
‘No one else has made this argument’
The legal argument Lehigh County prosecutors are making is a novel one that has no legal precedent or case law, attorneys from both sides acknowledged Thursday.
“It’s ridiculous because no else has made this argument” since the sentencing enhancement was enacted in 2006, Karoly said.
“If it’s so obvious, why has it never been presented before?”Defense attorney Joshua Karoly
He warned that “a prosecutor with unfettered discretion” could simply add charges that carry life-sentence enhancements against any defendant to eliminate their chance at bail.
“If it’s so obvious, why has it never been presented before?” Karoly said.
There have been no hearings like Thursday’s in Lehigh County Court because the Pennsylvania Constitution “categorically precludes” judges from setting monetary bail amounts for defendants facing life sentences, Dowdle said.
Krasley and Weaver remain free until Judge Thomas Caffrey rules on their bails next month.
He gave Lehigh County prosecutors two weeks to file a legal memorandum, and defense attorneys have two weeks to respond.
