Orie steps down as Majority Whip

In a defiant letter to Senate President Pro Tem Joseph Scarnati and Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, Republican Jane Orie, who was charged with theft and other crimes earlier this morning, has stepped down as Majority Whip.

Orie says the charges against her are “baseless,” and she’s “confident that [she] will be exonerated despite what will continue to be the obsessive and vendetta-drawn efforts of [Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen] Zappala and those beholden to him.”

Orie is making it clear her resignation is temporary. She says she “look[s] forward to resuming the duties as Whip once the charges have been dispatched.”

Here’s the letter:

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