Former Centre County Assistant District Attorney Lance Marshall began work as a private attorney at a local law firm Wednesday, a State College lawyer said.

Marshall's hiring by Masorti & Sullivan, P.C. comes less than a month after he resigned from the Centre County District Attorney's office amid allegations of inappropriate contact with a domestic abuse victim.

Philip Masorti, a State College attorney, said he feels fortunate to have Marshall at his firm.

"I've worked on the opposite side of Lance for more than a decade," Masorti said. "He's always been a formidable assistant district attorney."

A woman involved in a domestic violence case prosecuted by Marshall said she had received sexually explicit text messages from the former prosecutor in December. She complained to Centre County District Attorney Michael Madeira, she said, and was told by police that Marshall was soon offered an ultimatum: Resign or be fired.

Marshall announced his resignation from his position on Dec. 30, Madeira said. The head prosecutor called the resignation "a personnel matter that we handle in-house."

Madeira said he had not been contacted regarding Marshall's new position and had no further comment.

Prompted by a letter from Madeira, the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office has begun an investigation into the woman's allegations, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office said.

If something develops from Marshall's conduct at the District Attorney's office, it will be dealt with at the time, Masorti said.

Marshall could not be reached for comment.