An Indiana County attorney who admitted stealing $769,201 from clients was sentenced Wednesday to three to seven years in prison.
Daniel V. Delaney, 62, of Eighth and School streets, Indiana, had little to say yesterday before visiting Clinton County Judge Carson V. Brown, who sentenced him for stealing money from 23 clients over a nine-year period. Delaney pleaded guilty Aug. 3 to 10 counts of theft.
Although Delaney declined to comment, Brown had plenty to say to the disbarred attorney during the proceeding. Because Delaney had no prior criminal record, was treated recently for depression and bipolar disorder and cooperated with investigators, and also because of his age, Delaney's attorney, Thomas Johnson, had called upon Brown to be lenient.
"Any probationary sentence would only depreciate the gravity of these offenses," Brown responded.
Brown said he believed the sentence had to send a message that the trust between a lawyer and his client "cannot be breached" without severe consequences.
Brown also questioned whether Delaney's mental health problems - first diagnosed in September 1999 - had only originated "because of a culmination of the investigative process."
State Deputy Attorney General Scott Robinette, who prosecuted the case, said he was satisfied with the sentence. Robinette had urged Brown to impose at least a three- to six-year prison sentence for Delaney, who he said had a reputation for "his substantial intellect and charisma" prior to the discovery of the thefts.
"He's certainly fallen from his position. He not only hurt the victims, but the whole community and hurt the legal profession of the community," Robinette said.
"He betrayed those he was supposed to be acting as an advocate for. He repeatedly took advantage of those he was entrusted to protect. The magnitude of the thefts is especially stunning," Robinette said.
The amounts Delaney stole ranged from $1,166 to $123,496 and included money from clients' estate settlements, property sales and purchases and accident settlements. Delaney forged checks and altered paperwork delivered to his clients to cover his thefts.
Several victims attended the sentencing, but none chose to speak in court prior to the sentencing. However, Brown said many victims sent him letters regarding how the thefts had impacted their lives.
After Brown was led out of the court in handcuffs by county sheriff's deputies, a family victimized by Delaney said they did not believe the sentence was severe enough.
"He should immediately have to pay back everyone. It's a good racket to get into," said Edward Anderson of Homer City.
In 1995, Delaney stole $91,851 from the estate of Martha Gnibus, of which Anderson was an executor. Authorities also discovered in the investigation that Delaney had cashed a separate $9,272 retirement check written to Gnibus.
Anderson's son, Pat, said Delaney's thefts put his family through a lot of hardship.
"It's been misery for my parents for the last six years," he said.
Prior to sentencing, Johnson said his client had instructed him not to plead for leniency. Johnson said Delaney only recommended he say something positive about him.
"He also forbid his family from being here. He's reached the point the bleeding has to stop. My opinion is this is his first step toward rehabilitation and the first step toward taking responsibility," Johnson said.
Delaney, a well-known attorney, was disbarred in 1999 by the state Supreme Court for theft. He also was ordered yesterday by Brown to pay restitution.
As part of the plea bargain agreement reached between Delaney and the state Attorney General's Office in August, Robinette said Delaney had agreed to make restitution. However, yesterday Robinette said Delaney had not made any restitution payments to date.
Most of the money stolen has already been repaid to the victims through the Pennsylvania Client Security Fund and the Pennsylvania Estate Recovery Fund. Both are special funds used to reimburse victims bilked by attorneys.
Delaney is required to reimburse the funds for the payments. Robinette also said that Delaney owes thousands of dollars to many clients who did not meet the criteria for reimbursement through the funding sources.
According to the arrest affidavit, a Delaney client, Chester Fisher Jr., told agents from the Attorney General's Office that he did not discover Delaney had stolen $123,496 from an accident settlement until seven years later. And Fisher said he only learned about the theft by chance.
In 1998, a Pittsburgh attorney sent Fisher a file from a 1991 accident, Fisher told agents. When Fisher read the file, he saw a discrepancy in the figure he received as a result of a settlement and the figure listed in Delaney's paperwork. That's when Fisher knew he had been cheated, and he reported the discrepancy to authorities.
In a 1995 case, Delaney stole $119,243 in settlement money from John Kanaski, a client whose wife was killed in an automobile accident.
Delaney faced a maximum sentence of 70 years in jail and a maximum fine of $150,000.
