Distinguished Public Service
Senator Greenleaf was a prime sponsor of numerous laws, including extending the period of legal recourse for abused children, the constitutional amendment allowing for the option of electronic testimony for child victims and witnesses, and the law requiring tougher penalties for cruelty to domestic animals. He currently serves on the Board of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Association.
Additionally, he sponsored numerous consumer protection initiatives, including telemarketing controls, octane level testing, and the expansion of the Lemon Law to leased vehicles. His resolution created the Joint State Government Commission on Adoption Law. A champion of environmental protection, he sponsored legislation on recycling and natural resource conservation, and also sponsored legislation to provide greater public access to government records.
Senator Greenleaf served as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee for more than 30 years, and also served on the Appropriations, Banking & Insurance, Consumer Protection & Professional Licensure, and Environmental Resources & Energy Committees. As Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, he conducted hearings on the corrections system in Pennsylvania and achieved passage of legislation to reduce overcrowding in county jails. He also sponsored state sentencing reform legislation and conducted hearings on the state’s system of probation and parole and enacted public safety reforms in the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole and in the Interstate Compact, which deals with interstate parole arrangements. He was also an advocate of second-chance initiatives to assist non-violent offenders with educational and employment opportunities.
A member of the House of Representatives from 1977 to 1978, he served on the House Labor Relations and Judiciary Committees, and the Subcommittee on Crime and Corrections. He also served as an Upper Moreland Township Commissioner, as an Assistant District Attorney and Chief of the Appeals Division for the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, and as an Assistant Public Defender in Bucks County. Senator Greenleaf played basketball for the University of Pennsylvania, including in games held in the Palestra and Madison Square Garden. In high school, he was all-league in football and basketball.
Legal Experience That Stands Out
- As Chief of the Appeals Division for the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, Senator Greenleaf appeared as counsel in more than 400 cases in the Pennsylvania Appellate Courts, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
- As an Assistant District Attorney for the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, Senator Greenleaf successfully prosecuted members of a motorcycle gang for murder.
- As an Assistant Public Defender in Bucks County, Senator Greenleaf achieved an acquittal on murder charges against a young, juvenile basketball player who accidentally shot and killed someone.
- During his public service career, Senator Greenleaf advocated for enactment of new intellectual property laws, together with better enforcement of current laws, to protect U.S. copyrights and patents from piracy and counterfeiting by foreign competitors.