Q: My husband had a prior child sexual assault case that he was found not guilty of. He recently had another false accusation, and has the same DA. I feel like that is impartial and just like a jury, there should be no ties It is like it’s personal now. Is this against the law, or is there a way we could say since she has prior ties with the last case she’s impartial to this case? (Penn  Hills, PA)

A: No, it happens all the time. If she was in private practice, she could defend him on two criminal cases, one being subsequent. She could also sue him on two civil cases, one being after the other. In either scenario, she may not be able to defend him on the first case, then prosecute him criminally (if she takes a job with the DA) or sue him in civil court, on the second case. Is she prejudiced against him? She could be if she thinks he was guilty of the first case. Will it matter, probably not. If there was prosecutorial misconduct alleged or found in the first prosecution, that could be reason for the defense attorney to file a motion requesting the DA to recuse him or herself from the prosecution.