Bedford County
Bedford County was created on March 9, 1771 from part of Cumberland County and named in honor of Fort Bedford. The area quickly increased in population once safety became more established. The land with its lush farmland and woodland became an attractive site. It also formed an important center on the way to Pittsburgh and farther west of Pennsylvania. George Washington stayed in the county in response to the Whiskey Rebellion in 1794. The Bedford Springs Hotel became an important site for the wealthy. Under President James Buchanan, the hotel became the summer White House. The U.S. Supreme Court met at the hotel once. It was the only time that the high court met outside of the Capital. The 19th century featured a population boom in the county with the population doubling in size between 1870 and 1890. Railroads passing through the town connected the county with the mining industry.
Pennsylvania lawyers practicing law in Bedford County, PA specialize in various niches of the law, including areas like bankruptcy law, employment law, personal injury law, immigration, family law, medical malpractice law, workers compensation law, and even criminal law. Criminal law involves, logically enough, crimes committed by one party against another and are broken up into two subsets: felonies and misdemeanors. Felonies are larger offenses that typically result in harsher punishments. Misdemeanors are smaller offenses that yield sentences that are not quite as harsh. It is recommended that defendants retain one of the many experienced Pennsylvania lawyers practicing criminal law to represent them no matter which type of crime they have been accused of committing.
Defendants in civil cases, however, are never subject to punishments as severe as those handed down in criminal cases, no matter the type of crime charged. They will not serve jail time if found guilty in a civil trial and definitely won’t ever face the death penalty. The most common penalties handed out in civil court are monetary damages, with defendants being held responsible to reimburse the plaintiffs in an amount comparable to the loss they have suffered directly resulting from the defendant’s actions. The amount actually awarded is usually determined by the judge and/or jury and can include punitive damages as well as those for pain and suffering. Additionally, defendant’s will be held liable to pay any legal fees the plaintiff has incurred on behalf of their Pennsylvania lawyers.
In a criminal case, the burden of proof is higher than in a civil lawsuit. The prosecution must demonstrate through evidence that the defendant is guilty of the accused crime beyond a reasonable doubt. If the defense, on the other hand, shows that there is even a shred of reasonable doubt, the defendant will typically be found not guilty. The word “typically” is used because, as Pennsylvania lawyers who practice criminal law can attest, just about anything is possible in the jury system!
Pennsylvania lawyers provides for four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, rarer cases, towns. Below are listed the cities, boroughs and townships located in Bedford County:
Boroughs
|
Townships
|
