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Judge tells of perverted justice in Luzerne juvenile cases

By William Ecenbarger

For The Inquirer

WILKES-BARRE - The judge who studied Luzerne County's "cash-for-kids" scheme said yesterday that children's constitutional rights had been denied and justice perverted "in ways that I would never have dreamed possible."

Judge Arthur E. Grim of Berks County, who reviewed transcripts of about 100 cases of juveniles caught up in the scheme, said the scandal grew out of "unfettered power, greed, opportunity, and intimidation."

Lawyers, court employees, and school officials knew of the scheme, but winked at it for convenience or self-preservation, Grim testified.

He described his findings to the Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice, an 11-member panel named by Gov. Rendell, legislative leaders, and the state Supreme Court to look into the scandal.

The commission opened two days of hearings here yesterday in its inquiry into systemic failures that permitted what federal prosecutors say was a $2.6 million kickback conspiracy involving former Luzerne County Court Judges Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. and Michael T. Conahan.

Grim said "an almost routine disregard for the rights of juvenile offenders" was known to lawyers, court staff, and school authorities, yet went on for six years or more.

He said many school officials supported Ciavarella's "zero-tolerance" policies toward teenagers no matter how minor the offense.

"When a misbehaving kid was brought to school authorities, they immediately picked up the phone and called the police," Grim testified. "They did this because they knew that if they did, that child would go before Judge Ciavarella and would be out of their hair as a problem."

He said many court officials failed to speak out because they owed their jobs to either Conahan or Ciavarella. Under orders from Ciavarella, Grim said, officers of the Juvenile Probation Department stationed themselves outside the courtroom and persuaded parents to give up their children's rights by signing waiver-of-counsel forms that were improper and legally defective.

Grim noted that in 2001, the state Superior Court reversed Ciavarella's sentencing of a 13-year-old because the judge had failed to inform the defendant of his right to a lawyer.

"Judge Ciavarella vowed publicly that this would never again happen in his courtroom. This was widely known by the general public, and especially by the members of the bar. Yet Ciaverella subsequently repeated this behavior over and over again. To my knowledge, not a single member of the Luzerne County bar ever spoke out."

He speculated that local lawyers were silent because Ciavarella was the president judge of Luzerne County Court and they feared retribution in other cases that came before him.

Grim noted that many parents who sought out lawyers to defend their children were told not to bother, because it would "only make matters worse" with Ciavarella.

"It was common knowledge that something was rotten in Denmark," Grim said.

The state Supreme Court appointed Grim, a senior judge, to review juvenile cases Ciavarella handled. Following his study, Grim recommended that about 6,500 convictions meted out by Ciavarella between 2003 and 2008 be overturned. In an unprecedented step, the high court adopted this recommendation on Oct. 29.

Grim said yesterday he decided to recommend throwing out nearly all the cases because so much money was involved in the kickbacks that "it was impossible for Ciavarella to be impartial."

Federal prosecutors say Ciavarella and Conahan collected $2.6 million from the owner of two privately run youth detention centers in exchange for the judges' sending teen defendants there.

Ciavarella and Conahan had agreed to plead guilty, but a federal judge this summer rejected their agreements with prosecutors. They withdrew their pleas and have been indicted again on racketeering charges.

Grim recommended that serious consideration should be given to opening Juvenile Court proceedings to the public, and to creating a system of circuit-riding judges and public defenders with special skills in dealing with juveniles. State law closes criminal court proceedings for people under 18.

Superior Court Judge John M. Cleland, chairman of the commission, emphasized in opening remarks that one of the panel's primary goals was to discover "what it would have taken to encourage people to act" and prevent the injustices.

"How do we create a system in which those who see corruption call the police? How do we create a system in which prosecutors who see a judge flagrantly disregard the law make a report to the [state] Judicial Conduct Board? How can we develop a system in which we select and educate our Juvenile Court judges so that glib sloganeering - and using phrases like 'zero tolerance' - is not mistaken for thoughtful judicial reflection?"

The commission may begin getting answers when hearings resume today, with testimony scheduled from representatives of the District Attorney's Office, Public Defender's Office, and Juvenile Probation Department.

Cleland also issued this plea to the people of Luzerne County:

"We know the people in this community did not consciously choose to stand on the side of injustice at the expense of children. But what was it that made it so hard to do the right thing? Were people afraid? Were they intimidated? By whom? What protections would they have wanted? Where would they have wanted to take the information they had?"

The hearing was in a large meeting room at a hotel outside the city. About 50 spectators, including local officials and representatives of advocacy groups, attended the day session. The crowd size doubled for the evening hearing.

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Comments

Posted 06:43 AM, 11/10/2009

jerryk2b

A story of corrupt judges, lawyers and the entire Luzerne County Bar Association knowing there was corruption and not one of them doing anything about it. Just another day in the legal profession.

Posted 07:24 AM, 11/10/2009

grizzly6803

Ciavarella and Conahan were at this long before the juvenile scandle. In 2002, a well connected businessman, Louis Pagnotti, wrecked his car on I-81 near Wilkes-Barre. A mother driving with her two children, ages 11 and 12, stopped to see if he needed help. Well Louie helped himself to the woman's van, children still inside, and fled the scene. The horrified woman had no idea where he went with her kids. The van and kids were later found abandoned at the Wilkes-Barre airport. Pagnotti was charged with robbery of a motor vehicle, interference with custody of children, unlawful restraint and theft by unlawful taking. He was released on $35,000 bail. In June of 2002, all but one felony charge filed against Pagnotti as a result of the incident were dismissed by Luzerne County Judge Mark Ciavarella, who ruled that there was not enough evidence contained in a police affidavit to substantiate the other charges (although the Mom witnessed the kidnapping and the van was found with the kids still inside). Then in December of 2003, in a 15-minute court proceeding before Luzerne County President Judge Michael Conahan, Pagnotti's charges were reduced to three misdemeanors, he waived his arraignment on those charges, entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to three years of probation. That's PROBATION for kidnapping 2 kids and racing away with them in a van he stole from their mother! Yet if those two kids were caught shooting BB guns at one of Pagnotti's coal breakers, they probably would have been sent away for a year.

Posted 07:31 AM, 11/10/2009

Ticogringomike

Can't we set up a system like that for adult offenders in Philadelphia? Seems like it would work perfectly....

Posted 08:01 AM, 11/10/2009

Paula513

Judge Grim is on the right track and so are the Feds. No sweetheart deal for these two miscreants....only a lengthy prison sentence will do, along with enough fines to totally bankrupt them. Hopefully, they will be sued in civil courts by their victims. This is a real life TV drama. L&O had an episode that was eerily similar. People have to consider the dire consequences that CAN occur when they support "zero tolerance" and other popular buzzword policies. When policy is coupled with profit, when supreme power rests in the whim of a greedy megalomaniac, grave injustice is all but assured.

Posted 08:05 AM, 11/10/2009

jackpaul

Wow. The Fox's are in charge of the hen house........and feeding off of the hens rather well I see.

Posted 08:10 AM, 11/10/2009

jimf

This, and much other abuse of the public trust needs to be a capital crime.

Posted 08:41 AM, 11/10/2009

pal

When will we see the Feds go after Greg Zappala, owner/briber of the For-Profit Juvenile Detention Center?? Ever? Or will the Zappala connections (his father is the former PA Chief Justice Stephen Zappala) prevent a real investigation? -- We need to see the Racketeering investigation of Zappala and his corrupt connections that stopped the PA Supreme Court from investigating this horror sooner. Now we read that the former Justice Zappala is involved in the Gaming industry in PA and its corruption. the "Too-Well-Connected" in PA seem to be missing from this investigation - where is the real journalism about this? (although the Post-Gazette has done some great reporting on the Zappalas http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09298/1008257-455.stm)

Posted 08:42 AM, 11/10/2009

lupulin

Any lawyer who knew about this scheme and said nothing needs to lose his or her license. The rules of professional conduct require lawyers to report blatant misconduct by judges or other lawyers.

Posted 09:42 AM, 11/10/2009

nebulus

These were all officers of the court, especially the lawyers, who knowingly conspired with the judges to violate these kid's and parents their rights. At the minimum suspension for one year but preferably disbarment as these are lawyers who were legally, ethically and morally bankrupt and have no hope of redemption.If the parents have not considered it they should filing a suit against the public defender. As for the probation officers, sovereign immunity (inability to sue government officials) does not apply when the officials know their acts are a violation.

Posted 10:03 AM, 11/10/2009

Clearly Ambiguous

What these judges did is the most disgusting thing I have ever come accross. They should be waterboarded.

Posted 10:12 AM, 11/10/2009

Fascinated

Lock up the two judges and throw away the key. Disbar the lawyers who knew what was going on and did nothing. But don't for a minute think that anything is any better in the courtrooms of Philadelphia County. The judges may not be getting their kickbacks from the operator of a detention facility, but they are getting them, in the form of campaign contributions if not more, from the members of the bar who have cases before them. It is long past time to do away with elected judges in Pennsylvania and it is long past time to reform the entire trial court system.

Posted 10:16 AM, 11/10/2009

rob76774

Test

Posted 10:22 AM, 11/10/2009

rob76774

Greetings from the "coal mines"!! As pathetic as all of this might be, this is only the tip of the iceberg! Depending on how far the investigators are "permitted to go", this "iceburg tip" will lead from the Luzerne County Courthouse, to many local Luzerne County governments, to the State of Pa including its departments and agencies, to the Federal Government and its agencies, and possibly to the door of the White House. If anyone thinks that the gathering of Pa politicians in New York City every year is a "historical event", you need to take your blinders off!! Coruption, plain and simple, and, in this case, all Democrats!! (Not that Reps are any better)

Posted 10:43 AM, 11/10/2009

psyrus

There should be zero tolerance on juvenile crime. Maybe they'd think twice about committing crimes as an adult. These parents only seem to get involved when they think someone is harming their child but could care less when their child is harming someone else.

Posted 11:01 AM, 11/10/2009

Ben Dover

judges have life altering power. how many of these young children lives have been affected only because of the greed of these judges? for this reason any judge that has been found to break the law should be sentenced to life with no parole in a maximum security prison.