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“This definitely was not about the money. It was about the principle. This is a win for the community. Now no one has to be afraid of speaking up. That was the point of this.” -Denise Carey
In 2004 Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton was faced with some tough budget choices and he decided to close the fire house in the Heights section of the city. The people in that neighborhood were understandably upset and worried about their safety but we elect people to make tough decisions for the greater good. I thought it was good call because it would cost a fortune to repair the building that has since been sold.
In 2005, Denise Carey filed a petition to allow voters to decide the fate of the firehouse through a ballot referendum. The city argued some of the 1,300 signatures were collected under false pretenses, and Carey withdrew the petition on the day a county court hearing was scheduled to resolve the dispute. The city asked that Carey pay $11,056 to cover the city’s legal fees and Judge Michael Conahan agreed. The award was overturned on appeal in January 2007. That judgement by Conahan was the heart of this case.
Someone disagreed with a decision of her local government so she took action to oppose it and they tried to ruin her financially. My friend David put it better than I could:
The Council and Leighton thwarted Carey's efforts to try and get the Fire House closing on the ballot. The action against Carey basically said to city residents, if you dare to criticize or God forbid organize in opposition to the City administration policies, and we, the rich, wealthy and powerful will squash you like a bug. Maybe put you in debt, maybe take your home and livelihood away.
TL: "Mayor Leighton may be able to take away a fire station, but don’t let him take away our constitutional rights. A verdict in Denise Carey’s favor tells citizens you are safe. You can speak out and you don’t have to fear that a politician or the government can come back and sock you with a hefty attorney bill.”
In other business Leighton wants money from the state gaming funds for more surveillance cameras in the city. Slots money=Lower property taxes, do any of these politicians remember that?
2 days ago
6 comments:
I am so happy that Denise won this case..The City Administration is very powerful and I applaud Denise Carey's efforts...I see that Christine Katsock and Jamie Lake, people that were republicans and supposed to be on the activists side of things, were called as a DEFENSE WITNESS..somethings in this County never change...you really cant trust those that talk the tough game and set you up for a huge fall..The taxpayers of this area need to be more in touch with their governement..I think the Mayor should pay for this settlement out of his own pocket...better yet..lets take up a collection from the City residents and see how much money we can raise for this Mayor...bet we fall short by 67,000.00
Miss Carey's victory shall be short lived. In all of my years I have seen a lot, but I shall never cease to be amazed at the sheer arrogance of this young lady. One of the lessons that all good citizens must come to learn is that every action which we take is served with a side dish of consequence. There is no such thing as a free ride, as Miss Carey learned when she was slapped with a fine for appointing herself as Norma Raye. I understand the anxiety of the citizens who feared for lack of a fire department near them, but I will remind you that we live in a modern age. Had this action been taken in the days of the horse drawn fire carriage, I would have understood; but seriously, we have emergency vehicles designed to run at a very high speed nowadays. For those citizens who support Miss Carey, well, all I can say to you is that you have already paid for her muncipal playtime via your tax dollars (11,000 plus of them) and now because she underwent a hissy fit, unfortunately it shall be much more. I applaud Mr. Leighton for his efforts, however, with the liberal slant in the judiciary I fear that we all had better hold onto our wallets for the coming years. God willing, this blatant action will be overtured on appeal. Class dismissed.
If the people can't remember the promise of lower taxes through slots, why should the politicians?
Why don't they just add poker rooms, blackjack, and roulette at Pocono Downs and get it over with?
we shall soon see the results of many of Conahans rulings when the FBI probe soon draws near...
Whatever happened to those indictments; I was hearing last summer that they were just around the corner.
My congrats to Denise in this case. I think people should understand that a citizen has the right to petition the government and be received with respect, not just thrown to the side. I would hope that there would be no repercussions on the behalf of her as she is entitled to this avenue. I would also add that the expense the municipality racked up is only due to the fact that they failed to give Mrs. Carey her voice. So yes professor it works for all and that is the "side dish of consequences". Oh, sorry I forgot it only applies to the citizen and not the government, I got it.
Class dismissed.
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