Michelle Bednar for Controller 2017

Incumbent Democratic Luzerne County Controller had a nice gathering of supporters at Bentley's on Friday. It attracted a nice crowd including a few Republicans including District Attorney Stephanie Salavantis. The Democratic Party heavyweights State Reps. Eddie Day Pashinski , Jerry Mullery and State Sen. John Yudichak sang her praises. Her campaign team touted her accomplishments including weeding out incorrect homestead tax breaks wrongly granted to some Luzerne County property owner. Her opponent Walter Griffith  had received the break on two homes and an auto repair business he owns.

Democratic County Council candidates Wendy Cominsky, Matt Vough and John Gadomski  offered their support and Republican Chris Perry showed up. Perry has been to almost every event D or R I've been to. He is running hard.

Other notables were Judge David Lupas who is up for retention and George Brown who should have been the Mayor of W-B. I asked Judge Lupas about mandatory minimums and he gave me a  lawyers answer saying they could act as a deterrent but Judges should be able to fit the punishment to the crime.

                                          


Luzerne County sending bills to recipients of incorrect homestead tax break

Luzerne County Democratic Picnic

This little girl pictured above doesn't want Mitt Romney to take her Big Bird away.

Congrats to recently installed Luzerne County County Democratic Chair Bob Boyer for putting together a great event that was attended by about 400 people according to my head counter Bob Caruso. Let's do it in the summer next time Bob.

The Luzerne  County GOP picnic had about 50 attend but they have gone back to the old ways of fighting each other. Urbanski won the Chair so the Casey supporters will boycott everything. More on that later in the week.

State Rep Eddie Day Pashinski was the Master of Ceremonies and I highly recommend him to MC your wedding the next time you get married.

 Senator Bob Casey spoke about the 100% of the American people and I blamed him for creating a monster that is Rick Santorum. He beat Ricky by 18 points in the last Senate race only to see Santorum come in 2nd in the Republican Presidential primaries. I predict that Santorum will be the GOP nominee in 2016 because he came in 2nd and the GOP is an orderly party. He will start his run  after he eats Big Bird.

Blast from the recent past Chris Carney who teased us about another run said Romney is not fit to be Commander in Chief. He noted that he is a Catholic war veteran speaking at the Catholic War Vets grove.

One of my favorite state reps Phyllis Mundy said the state GOP is as evil as the Tea Party yahoos on the national stage. She pointed out that 2/3 rd of Medicaid spending goes to people in nursing homes. We can't tax Shale but we can give corporations tax breaks.

State Rep Mike Carroll said the cartographers got it wrong Moosic is part of Luzerne County. Matt Cartwright corrected him  saying Luzerne County is part of Moosic.

Matt Cartwright reminded the crowd that "We are the Democrats" and did a shout out with the crowd  challenging them to stand up for Democratic values.

The thing that really struck me was the diversity of the crowd. This is not the Luzerne County Democratic Party of your father or even 4 years ago when the crooks that have gone to jail ran the show. I wasn't welcome then by Skrep, Lupas, Makowski and Vondy and the rest.

People from Hazleton turned out to support Ransom Young and Gene Stilp. Many of them Hispanic.

When a picture was being taken the shout wasn't cheese

It was HOLA!

Idiot watch

Arrest in Plains Little League fire 

Harding man arrested in Plains Little League arson

After getting liquored up at a bar Brian Gashi, 39, of Harding and a friend (who he wouldn't rat out) went looking for a place to rob. They broke into the Plains Little League clubhouse and got away with deep fryer, food, candy, beverages, money, an electronic score board controller and the public address system To top it it off he set fire to place. Those actions make him a scumbag but he rises to level of idiot criminal because he left his cell phone behind.. The cops called a few people on his saved list who told him who he was then arrested him and he confessed to the crime. My favorite Judge let him go earlier,  David Lupas vacated an arrest warrant for Gashi on March 7th. I'm not sure who the bigger idiot is.

I always try to find a video to go along with Idiot Watch (YouTube Weekend) and got 3 suggestions.

Michelle suggested Lady Gaga. I always look for an excuse to post a Gaga video but this really fits with all the prison imagery. 

    



DB Echo thinks this Robert Cray song speaks to the incident.

I'm also thinking Robert Cray's "Smoking Gun":

I get a constant busy signalWhen I call you on the phoneI get a strong uneasy feelingYou're not sitting there alone
I'm having nasty, nasty visionsAnd baby you're in every one, yeahAnd I'm so afraid I'm gonna find you withA so called smoking gun    Mrs. G 

Lupas familly saga

I have to admit to having corruption fatigue. I still read the stories in the local press but haven't posted about the 3o+ people charged and convicted in the ongoing probe lately. Maybe I'm succumbing to the cynicism of many people I know that have been resigned to the fact that we have been ruled by crooks for a long time and think things will go back to business as usual once the heat is off. All the attention has been on the corrupt public official that have been convicted of taking bribes but now another one of the people paying the bribes has been sentenced to jail.

SCRANTON - ... local engineer Michael J. Pasonick was sentenced to one year prison, a $250,0000 fine and two years probation on federal charges he bribed a school board official.
U.S. District Judge Richard P. Conaboy acknowledged all the good Pasonick has done, including recently opening a food pantry he plans to turn into a soup kitchen, but called his actions "reprehensible." Conaboy also cited Pasonick's cooperation with federal authorities in landing "seven or eight" convictions of public officials," but noted "you were not charged for much of your questionable conduct."

Next up is Bob Mericle. If somebody is taking bribes someone is paying them.

Now longtime Wilkes-Barre Area solicitor is accused of running a ponzi scheme that defrauded at least 30 people who trusted him with their life savings. The victims are being represented by Earnie Preate of all people. I'm not sure what is worse, defrauding us nameless/faceless taxpayers or people you have a relationship with at church or who think of you as a friend.

W-B Area solicitor resigns amid probe

The whole thing started unraveling. Records in the county Prothonotary's Office indicate Lupas has defaulted on three loans since last April, owing more than $300,000 in principal, interest and fees.

Luzerne County Judge David Lupas sounded like an ungrateful child when asked about his father's troubles.
"I haven't talked to my father in some time," the judge said.

Then this bombshell dropped explaining why he hasn't talked to him.

CV:
Luzerne County Judge David W. Lupas said in a statement released today that he provided information to authorities investigating his father, attorney Anthony J. Lupas Jr., for allegedly running a multi-million-dollar Ponzi scheme.

Wow!

In 2003 Lupas the senior bankrolled Lupas the junior's bid for Luzerne County DA to the the tune of $750,000. You now have to wonder where the money came from.

Lupas tenure as DA was dominated by the Hugo Selinski case. He couldn't get a murder conviction of a guy with 5 bodies in his back yard and repeatedly screwed up on procedural issues in this and other cases. He went on to be a Luzerne County Judge of the Court of Common Pleas and was put in charge of Juvenile Court. While he was the DA many of the abuses that happened under Judge Mark Ciavarella occurred. Lupas and Jackie Mo didn't pay attention to the Juvenile Court

Salavantis hits Jackie Mo hard

Republican challenger Stephanie Salavantis is trying to make Luzerne County District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll a part of the kids for cash scandal that resulted in Judges Conahan and Ciavarella going to jail. She has been running an ad the last few days that says Jackie Mo could have made a 3 minute journey to juvinile court to find out what was going on and thus end it. The spot is not on her YouTube channel even after I asked her to post it. That request was posted on her Facebook page and was deleted within minutes. Her facebook page has been chopped up with everything before September being deleted.

Nice try, but David Lupas was the District Attorney for most of the time when all this was going on. It's ironic that Lupas is now the judge in charge of the Juvunile Court. With Hugo Selenski back in the news I'm reminded how many times Lupas dropped the ball and couldn't get a murder conviction for someone with at least 5 people buried in his back yard.

Musto Carroll faces aggressive challenger

What the hell here is the Majestic ad




Update: The "Three Minutes" spot has been added to Salavantis' YouTube Channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/salavantisforda

Young Republicans have questions for Jackie Mo

From the inbox


PRESS RELEASE:

For additional information, contact:
Luzerne County Young Republicans
LuzerneCountyYRs@gmail.com


In light of the recent sentencing of Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan for their roles in the “Kids for Cash” scandal, The Luzerne County Young Republicans (LCYRs) seek answers to lingering questions surrounding Luzerne County corruption. How could this scandal have continued for years without any County Officials noticing? Would the scandal have been prevented, or at least its effect been minimized, if other County officials had done their jobs?

The Interbranch Juvenile Commission shed light on these questions. In its report, the Commission concluded that District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll failed to perform her duties and showed no interest or concern for the juvenile court system during the “Kids for Cash scandal.”

In addition to her negligence, Musto Carroll engaged in nepotism and cronyism by hiring Mark Ciavarella’s daughter and daughter-in-law in the District Attorney’s Office. Jackie Musto Carroll’s actions reek of corruption and the LCYRs believe she owes the residents of Luzerne County an explanation for her behavior.

The LCYRs request that District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll formally answer each of the following questions and return the same to the LCYRs.

1. Why did you fail to discover the Kids for Cash scandal?

2. By your own admission, you never set foot in a juvenile courtroom during the Kids for Cash scandal. Why did you ignore this part of your job?

3. Under your watch, the Assistant District Attorneys were not adequately trained and as a result failed to recognize and challenge the routine deprivation of juveniles’ constitutional rights by Mark Ciavarella. Why did you fail to train your Assistant District Attorneys when proper training would have prevented the scandal?

4. Despite the obvious nepotism and cronyism involved, why did you hire Mark Ciavarella’s daughter and daughter-in-law in the District Attorney’s Office?

5. Did Mark Ciaveralla ask you to hire his daughter and daughter-in-law, or contact you in any way regarding the hiring process?

6. Do you believe that nepotism or cronyism have any place in government?

7. Given the Interbranch Juvenile Commission’s finding that you “stood by and abdicated” your responsibility as a prosecutor, how can the residents of Luzerne County have any faith that you will not to continue to abdicate your responsibility since you have already set abdication of responsibility as a precedent?

8. Given the Commission’s finding that you “demonstrated no initiative, interest, or concern with what was occurring in juvenile court,” how can the residents of Luzerne County feel confident that you can effectively lead the charge of protecting our children?

9. Why did you fight to block the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania from reviewing whether the Luzerne County juveniles, who were denied legal counsel, were entitled to relief?

The LCYRs have sent the above questions to Jackie Musto Carroll. We request that she answer and return the above questions to the LCYRs by October 14, 2011.


The Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice Report via SOP


In testimony before the commission, current District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll and her predecessor, David W. Lupas, who is now a county judge presiding over juvenile matters, "incredibly conceded that they had never set foot in a juvenile court throughout their entire careers," the report said. Lupas and Musto Carroll "demonstrated no initiative, interest, or concern with what was occurring in juvenile court."

From the TL:
Musto Carroll declined Friday to comment or address the questions in the release. She and Lupas have said assistant district attorneys never made them aware of concerns they had in juvenile court.

The LCYR's don't have a website but you can find them on Facebook

This guy has balls

I spotted this LTE in the CV written by an attorney that recently started practicing in Luzerne County. Under the previous regime of Conahan and Ciavarella he would never win another case in this county again. We will see if things change.


Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. claims he saw nothing, heard nothing and knew nothing about the injustice occurring in the courts of Luzerne County. I don't believe him. I do believe that he would do anything to save his $157,000 a year job, as would his fellow judge, Tom Burke.
.
Terrorists at Guantanimo Bay had more rights than children did in Luzerne County. How would you feel if it were your child who was lied to, tricked and unjustly sent to kiddie concentration camp?
.
Olszewski and Burke claim they did nothing wrong. "It wasn't me, It was them. I didn't know. How could I know?" Just men had a duty to discover the truth. Olszewski said the hearings took place a half a mile away in another building. How could he hear? How did an advocacy group over 100 miles away in Philadelphia hear enough to file lawsuits on behalf of more than 500 children? How did the FBI know enough about it to raid juvenile probation? Olszewski says if he knew he would have told the FBI. If "ifs" and "buts" were candy and nuts, oh what a party we'd have.
.
I was a judicial law clerk in Schuylkill County. In my experience, what went on in the courthouse and in many of the cases was common knowledge among the judges, staff members and law clerks. Even then, almost 10 years ago, stories were coming out of Luzerne County from lawyers and litigants alike, that the judges were crooked, that the cases were fixed. It was not until I started practicing in Luzerne County that I realized that most of the gossip was true.
Peter Paul Olszewski and Thomas Burke have failed us. They have failed to protect us. They have failed to protect our children.

Now it is election time and they want you to know them as "Peter Paul" and "Tom." After they win retention they're back to being "Your Honor," and we the people are back to being nobodies. In this lawyer's opinion, Judge Olszewski and Judge Burke do not deserve to be retained as judges.
.
Attorney Joseph A. Woitko
Beaver Meadows

The question I keep asking is how does everybody know what was going on in Lokuta's courtroom but nobody knew what was going on in Ciavarella's? Zen want's to know why the District Attornerys David Lupas (now Judge) and Jackie Musto Carrol and their staffs did not notice a gross disparity between the offense and the punishment that was meted out?

And how about the Probation Department and the Public Defenders?

PPO-2 answered my question a week ago and the TL has Tom Burke's defense today.


"I can tell you categorically I did not have a single incident where a lawyer came to me and said, ‘By the way, there’s something you should look out for because there may be abuses,’ ” Burke said. “We can look back now and say if there were more checks and balances, maybe these abuses would have been discovered sooner.”

Nancy, we hardly knew ya

15 down and hundreds to go.

The TL and CV are reporting that Wyoming Valley West School Board President and executive director of the Luzerne County Redevelopment Authority Allen Bellas has signed a plea agreement with federal prosecutors and is expected to be charged soon with accepting money for an official action. He also served on the LCCC Board of Trustees from 2003 to 2007 and the feds are also looking at that outfit. If you are keeping score at home that makes it 15 people that have now been charged with corruption in Luzerne County this year.

His wife, Nancy Bellas, is the Democratic nominee for Luzerne County Prothonotary. Not knowing her connections I was surprised that she won the primary against Duryea politico Art Akulonis and the most qualified candidate Gerald Mullery. Now it makes sense or should I say nonsense.

I have been predicting for months that Republican Carolee Medico Olenginski would win the election and fair or not this probably just sealed the deal.

I spent the afternoon browsing Bellas' campaign finance reports that ace Election Bureau honcho Leonard Piazza has posted on the county website and they have many familiar names. She accepted money from Bob Mericle after he was identified as being one of the two bribers of the Juvie Brothers. Other highlights are contributions from Maryanne Petrilla, Bob Reilly, Jim Blaum, Frank Crossin, Murry Uffberg, Bill Joyce, Mike Pasonick, AJ Lupas, Mike Butera and other cast members of the local Democratic establishment.

Bill Sharkey is an embezzler

W-B: Luzerne County Court Administrator William T. Sharkey pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement this morning in federal court.

Usually a plea agreement and a court hearing answers the questions surrounding the crime. But there are many questions that have not been answered yet in this case. Reading the Indictment and Plea agreement I have to ask which Judges signed the forfeiture orders and why was he able to get away this for 10 years? The theft was discovered when the state police went to District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll to ask for some of the ill gotten gains to buy some new equipment. She checked the accounts and discovered the money wasn't there and called in the FBI. I find it hard to believe that the state police and other agencies were not aware of past forfeitures and asked for a piece of the pie.

Her predecessor, who is now a Judge, David Lupas was the District Attorney for most of the time that Sharkey was stealing these funds. We all know that paperwork and accountability were not Lupas' strong points. Lupas recently sentenced a Pittston Township secretary who pleaded guilty to stealing more than $31,000 from the township to house arrest. Judge Mark Ciavarella did the same thing when a couple of people got caught stealing really big bucks from the Recorder of Deeds office.

Law and Order: Special Victims Unit part trois

Another draconian sentence for someone caught stealing from the taxpayers.

WILKES-BARRE -A former Pittston Township secretary who pleaded guilty to stealing more than $31,000 from the township’s garbage fund was sentenced Wednesday to eight to 16 months of house arrest.

This stiff sentence was handed down by our newest Judge David Lupas. Recently President Judge Mark Ciavarella also handed down similar sentences to 2 employees of the Recorder of Deeds Office for stealing hundreds of thousands from us.

Some of our Luzerne County jurists may have an interest in establishing a precedent by sentencing people convicted of public corruption to laying on the couch watching cartoons for a few months.

Tone deaf

With all the proof of financial mismanagement in Luzerne County such as the debit card misuse and a never ending unbalanced budget these geniuses come up with more ways to spend money or forgo revenue.

Officials want to hire consultant to review purchasing policies

I think hiring the army of consultants the last few years has contributed to this fiscal mess. We elected the commissioners to set policy and they hire people to manage our money but they're going to bring in people from outside to explain to them what is right from wrong ? You can write all the policies you want but if they are not enforced they're worthless. So the response to the ethical lapses and lack of basic math skills is to spend more money. Incredible.

In middle of this mess the local Chamber of Commerce shows up looking for a handout.

Chamber requests $3.5 M in loan forgiveness

I haven't looked at the merits of the proposal but boy is the timing bad. The county can't pay this years bills plus things aren't looking good for next year and these guys want to renege on paying back some loans. Only in Luzerne County can a Democratic politician resign his office to head up the local Chamber then come back to that same body to ask for a sweetheart deal.

Other Debit Card news:

Deputy Warden Sam Hyder has not provided receipts for all his charges and was ordered to pay back anything he can't document but he wasn't fired, Yet. Skrep backs him for now but I think he will be thrown under the bus in an attempt to save the rest of their asses. The rest of the Magnificent Seven also some explaining to do.

Some people came out to protest what has been going on:

Protesters insist Skrep resign

Taxpayers Demand Resignations in Luzerne County

And one guy is going to file a criminal complaint. W-B: Joseph Naperkowski said he wants justice for Luzerne County taxpayers.

He plans to file a private criminal complaint against the seven officials using county-issued debit cards this morning with Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas’ office.

Lupas will either blow it off or kick it down the road to the PA Attorney General who has already said that he won't investigate because of the Secret Service investigation. And what about that probe by an agency of almost universal acclaim in the investigation of financial crimes. This quote didn't make me confident.

WILKES-BARRE- The U.S. Secret Service field office in Philadelphia has requested a copy of the debit-card internal audit being conducted by the Luzerne County Controller’s Office, county Controller Maryanne Petrilla said Wednesday...Just because the Secret Service is investigating the debit-card usage, it doesn’t automatically mean the case will lead to criminal prosecution, Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Robert Slama said.

“A lot of times we can suggest best business practices, set up a system of checks and balances, internal audits, impartial review and other general business accounting practices,” Slama said.


Forget the Secret Service and the Attorney General the agency that matters in this is the IRS.

I think it's pretty simple. If the people who had the debit cards in 2006 and charged personal expenses to it without declairing it as income on that year's 1040 will have to answer to charges of tax evasion.

Pay it back

In the latest twist in the Luzerne County debit card scandal County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak has ordered officials who made purchases using county debit cards payback all the money then submit receipts to get reimbursement. Not a bad attempt at damage control along with throwing "Sapphire" Sam Hyder (thanks Corbett) under a bus.


Some people have come to Hyder's defense saying he is being made the scapegoat because he used his card to buy some drinks at a Las Vegas establishment that specializes in young women displaying liberated sweater puppies and was part of the group that paid $896.88 to dine at a French restaurant, that's a lot of snails and crepes. But I don't buy his color of the card confusion excuse and he may become the sacrificial lamb in the attempt to get this off the front pages when there should be wholesale slaughter in this affair.

This should be taken a step further. After the county gets it's money back any county bigwig that can't fully account for the charges without a really good explanation should be fired or in the case of the DebitCardmissioner himself, resign.


Taking my advice from yesterday District Attorney David W. Lupas has requested a review by the state Office of Attorney General.

Election day in PA, I voted

The polling place was calmer than the primary with only 3 poll workers but signs for everyone running. We were voters number 300 and 301 out of almost 1000 at about 4PM. Maybe by the closing of the polls at 8PM half the voters might show up which is considered a good turnout for a local election.

I voted for some Dems and some Republicans. In the choice for a new Judge of the Court of Common Pleas I tested the write-in function. Dave Lupas will forever tied to Hugo Selenski in my mind so I typed in Hugo for Judge. It is so easy to do a write-in or type -in I think more under the radar candidates will emerge in the local primaries.

Election day in PA, Luzerne County

The choice for Judge of the Court of Common Pleas is between Democrat Dave Lupas or Republican Dave Lupas. I still find it hard to believe that no serious attorney ran for this seat. It's now easier than ever to do a write-in with the touch screens so may be I'll type in Stephen Colbert or better yet, Hugo Selenski. And Jackie Mo is the next DA.

Luzerne County Commissioner

The order of finish will be Skrep, Petrilla, Urban and Jones. Then when we get to end of the year when the budget doesn't balance and the state pulls the funding for the juvie jail in Pittston along with other disasters waiting to happen people will have second thoughts.

Coroner

An office that shouldn't be elected but it is and the best politician will win. John Corcoran is a Wilkes-Barre Area School Board member and the Democratic nominee. Jim Desiderio points to his 20+ years as an assistant coroner but got a back door nomination on the Republican side. I'm sure either man can do the job as well as anyone other than a pathologist like the late , great Dr. Huddock.

Sheriff

This one might provide the only drama of the night. Incumbent Republican Barry Stankus was cruising to victory until it came out that he was moonlighting at a grocery store and "forgot" to list that income on his financial disclosure form. Mike Savokinas is running hard and the Dems are looking for a sweep. The Lu Lac Political Letter recaps the race.

Recorder of Deeds

The only other Republican row officer Mary Dysleski has had a mess on her hands because of the thefts from the office that her opponent Red O'Brien has been hitting hard in his TV ads. Her defense is that she put procedures in place that discovered it. My friend Pope George Ringo has the pulse of Pittston and is predicting an O'Brien upset.

Other

Bob Reilly will win a sixth term as Clerk of Courts defeating Republican Butler Township tax collector Sue Rossi. My favorite guy in the courthouse Treasurer Mike Morreale faces token opposition from Republican Gina Nevenglosky.

Yawn

I haven't seen a local election in Luzerne County so boring as this one. Not much paid media and even a lack of yard signs. Most of the offices are usually decided in the Democratic primary but even in May there wasn't much doubt that David Lupas would win the nod for Judge and Jackie Mo would be the next District Attorney. The biggest surprise was John Corcoran winning the nomination for Coroner with Jim Desiderio winning a write-in effort for the Republican slot.


The TL is starting it's endorsement inquisitions and Democratic Sheriff candidate Michael Savokinas tried to make some hay over an audit of the office done by Democratic Controller and Commissioner candidate Maryanne Petrilla. Not much there except some suggestions to do things in a more timely manor. He has some ideas for the office to do more and incumbent Republican Barry Stankus responds that's nice, but how are you going to pay for it.

Democrat Mike Morreale is a good bet to best Gina Nevenglosky for another term as Treasurer and Clerk of Courts Bob Reilly will probably defeat Republican Sue Rossi. Even the Recorder of Deeds race has been calm despite the theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars from the office. You would think that Red O’Brien would be knocking incumbent Republican Mary Dysleski over the head about it. But Dysleski has a defense ready according to the TL: She said she instituted financial controls that detected the theft, and she immediately alerted the district attorney’s office. “We did the right thing and kept everything in the open.”

The Commissioners race is not in doubt but at least it's providing some entertainment with Greg Skrepnak calling Steve Urban a terrorist. And today Skrep asked of Urban "In eight years, what has he done but bitch?" And that great American organization The League of Women Voters will be sponsoring a forum for the Commissioner candidates Oct. 18, which will start at 7 p.m. in the Burke Auditorium at King's College's McGowan School of Business, North River and West Union streets, Wilkes-Barre. Bill Jones said he can't make it but he has missed most of the campaign so far anyway.

Wilkes-Barre Online chimes in on the lack of activity in W-B, Are we holding an election a month from now, or was it secretly postponed? And The Lu Lac Political Letter says It's now or never in the W-B Mayors race and provides links to the candidates websites. The only website for any of the W-B council candidates I have found is for Walter Griffith.

County Republican Chairwoman Lynette Villano gave another lame excuse for the impending blowout saying she thinks the buzz over the 2008 presidential race is also overshadowing the November election. Sorry Lynette but readers of this site know the real buzz is about the 2008 10th Congressional District race.

Meuser moving to the 10th, Skrep moving to the 11th?

CV: Dan Meuser, one of the leading Republican contenders for the 10th Congressional District seat in next year's election, doesn't live in the district...Meuser, a resident of Jackson Township in Luzerne County, lives in the 11th Congressional District, but his home is close to Kingston Township, which is in the 10th...The U.S. Constitution doesn't require congressmen to live in the districts they represent, but political opponents could make an issue of it.

Meuser will try to head them off. He plans to move into the 10th before he files nomination petitions next spring to run for Congress, he said. He has not found a new home.

Meuser said he doesn't want to run for the 11th district seat because he doesn't want to get in the way of Republican Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta, who is considering running."I respect what Lou has done on immigration, given Washington's disinterest in securing our borders, and I think he is the right candidate at the right time to be in Congress," he said.

Skrep: I’m not running for House

Political functions have been buzzing with talk that Skrepenak is eying a townhome in Jenkins Township because he plans to run against U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski, D-Nanticoke, next year, said Terry Best, a Pittston Area School Board member and Democrat...Best said Tuesday that he mentioned the plan because he was informed about it from reputable Democrats during a political gathering for judicial candidate David Lupas. “It’s all over the place,” Best said.

Lupas punts

More Delays in Selenski, Weakley Trials

The Luzerne County district attorney's office filed appeals Tuesday to the state superior court in the case of Selenski and Weakley. Those appeals mean another year or a year and a half before the men head to trial.

If this case ever comes to trial it will be long after Dave Lupas starts wearing black robes. He leaves it to Jackie-Mo to clean up another one of his messes.

Lupas drops the ball again

CV: The Ortiz cases mark the 10th time in less than 18 months that Lupas’ office lost cases or dismissed charges after failing to bring a defendant to trial within the required time period.

TL: 17 drug charges dropped

And this guy is going to be a Judge. Who's he going to blame this time.

Methadone clinic

"All I can tell you is we’re not happy with it,” -Yatesville Mayor Joseph Chiumento

It seems to be the wave of the future. More drug treatment centers as oppossed to locking people up. Jackie-Mo and Dave Lupas want to lock up all the druggies like that has worked over the last 40 years. The people who have to live next to a treatment facility understandably yell NIMBY. But this proposal is for a for a facility is in a location that was carefully selected as it is away from residential areas, schools and child care facilities.

It's a sad thing that there is such a demand for this but the people who are proposing it have done their homework. The last time this came up was over the clinic in Plains Twp. and then Mayor of W-B Tom McGroarty led the charge against it. But low and behold. There has not been one police call to that clinic since it opened.

People make stupid decisions in their lives. Does that mean you just turn your back on them when they want to make it right? I'd rather have someone hooked on methadone than heroin living on my street. And believe me, they live on YOUR street.

Looking to the fall, the easy ones

Well we know that Dave Lupas will be the new Luzerne County Judge having won both nominations and Jackie-Mo will take his place as District Attorney since no Republican bothered to run. And John Corcoran will take over from Dr. Jack as Coroner. Skrep and Petrilla will be the next majority commissioners as Steve Urban and Bill Jones will spend their time bashing each other instead of the Democrats. Bob Reilly is looking good for a sixth term as Clerk of Courts facing surprise Republican winner Butler Township tax collector Sue Rossi. My favorite guy in the courthouse Treasurer Mike Morreale will face token opposition from Republican Gina Nevenglosky. Lou Barletta won both nominations for Mayor of Hazleton and will avoid any backlash when the federal court rules that the immigration ordinance is unconstitutional.

Local blogger reaction to the results is easy as only me, Mark and David are the only ones writing about it. In the past year I have seen about 20 blogs about local politics come and quickly go. The key seems to be as soon as list them on NEPA Blogs they stop posting. Just call me the kiss of death. Sorry DB.