HARRISBURG (AP) – A temporary official will be appointed to run the Dauphin County court system after the court clerk and two deputies departed on the eve of criminal contempt proceedings about performance at the office. The “unprecedented leadership void” in the Dauphin County clerk of courts office prompted the state Supreme Court to declare a “judicial emergency” and order the county’s president judge to appoint a temporary acting clerk. That person will serve until Gov. Josh Shapiro appoints an acting clerk, which is normally an elected position. The clerk of courts and the first deputy of the office resigned late Friday and the second deputy was fired. The abrupt departures followed “months of crisis” in the office that saw problems such as defendants stranded in jail, others picked up on bench warrants that should have been terminated, and incorrectly recorded case dispositions and sentences. In May, the county’s president judge ordered the clerk of courts office to correct the problems or be held in contempt. A criminal contempt proceeding had been scheduled for today.