The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court on Friday overturned the dismissal of a lawsuit that was filed to block the planned removal of Pittsburgh’s Columbus statue, writing in a 24-page opinion that a lower court “erred” in its dismissal of the case in 2022.

Philadelphia litigator George Bochetto filed the lawsuit, and subsequent appeal, on behalf of the Italian Sons and Daughters of America (ISDA), a not-for-profit cultural and fraternal organization that was founded in Pittsburgh in 1930; ISDA is a member of the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations (COPOMIAO).  

“I am delighted the Commonwealth Court agreed that the dismissal of this lawsuit by the lower court was plain error and that, while the mayor of Pittsburgh has certain First Amendment rights, he does not have free reign to violate the law,” said Bochetto. “I am also hopeful that the new mayor will sit down with me to reach a resolution without further costly litigation and a waste of taxpayers’ money."

The reinstated case will now go back before Judge John T. McVay, Jr. of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas “for further factfinding and decision,” per the opinion. 

"The bronze Columbus statue in Schenley Park, casted in 1958 after years of meager donations from poor Italian immigrants, symbolizes the contributions and sacrifices of not only Italian immigrants, but of all immigrants, to the growth and success of the city of Pittsburgh. This history has the same right to be preserved and celebrated as does the history of all other groups," said Basil M. Russo, who is president of both ISDA and COPOMIAO. 

In December 2022, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court — in a separate lawsuit — sided with Bochetto when it blocked Philadelphia’s former mayor from uprooting the city’s 148-year-old Columbus statue from a public plaza. The outcome of that case weighed heavily in yesterday’s Pittsburgh ruling (see pages 17 – 19).