The buck starts here

No matter what goes wrong in the Luzerne County District Attorney's office the head of that department won't take responsibility. The latest screwup is over issuing of a warrant for a person who recently murdered someone. Mr. Lupas blames it on Public Defenders Office for the delay but the PD says he made no such request. Is this guy paperwork challenged? The Hugo escape charges, the Holdren case and many others just show a lack of attention to detail. His opponent in the upcoming election for Judge is asking the Attorney General for an investigation.

Marsilio Campaign Calls for the Attorney’s General Office to Investigate District Attorney David Lupas

When David Lupas lost the Hugo Selenski murder trial he blamed the Judge.. He made up allegations that had no factual basis in order to have the Judge remove himself from the second Selenski Trial.

When Mr. Lupas had a case dismissed because it was not brought to trial on time he blamed an Assistant District Attorney and said it was the Assistant’s fault.

When the newspapers ran a story on all the cases that have been dismissed because they weren’t brought to trial on time, Mr. Lupas blamed the Police.

Now a man, Lewis Jones, has been murdered because Mr. Lupas ignored a Court Order made on March 5th to issue a Warrant for the arrest of the man who killed Mr. Jones. This Court Order was made 8 days before Mr. Jones was killed. Mr Lupas has blamed the Public Defender’s Office and said he ignored the Judge’s Order because they asked him not to issue the Warrant.

Where does it end? When is Mr. Lupas responsible for something?

Mr. Lupas is telling the voters he intentionally ignored a Court Order because he was asked to. What right does Mr. Lupas have to ignore a Court Order because someone allegedly asked him to?

The Attorney General’s Office should be called in to conduct an investigation of Mr. Lupas and the District Attorney’s Office and make an independent determination of the culpability of Mr. Lupas for the death of Lewis Jones. The Attorney General’s Office should decide if criminal charges are warranted against Mr. Lupas in the death of Lewis Jones. No one, not even the District Attorney, is above the Law.

Hugo part deux

OK maybe it's part 57 as far as this guys court appearances go. People forget he spent time in prison for bank robbery and has been charged and convicted of a host of other charges from DUI to passing bad checks. But his second murder trial is on the way. I was watching the news tonight and someone said he should get a medal because he was killing drug dealers. Hello, he's an admitted drug dealer. And because people make stupid choices in their lives doesn't mean they deserve to die a horrible death.

So now the Hugo circus is headed back to the center ring and the pressure is on DA Dave Lupus to get a conviction this time.

KINGSTON TOWNSHIP -Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas and his prosecution team convinced Magisterial District Judge James Tupper there was enough evidence for Hugo Selenski and Paul Weakley, his alleged accomplice, to stand trial for the murders of Kerkowski and Fassett. Tupper made the ruling despite no eyewitnesses to the murders or anyone placing Selenski or Weakley at Kerkowski's Hunlock Township home May 3, 2002, the day prosecutors allege the crimes were committed.

Hugo's former girlfriend has turned on him and some of the prosecution witnesses lack credibility:

Rodney Samson, another acquaintance of Selenski, said Selenski offered him $20,000 to help kill Kerkowski. But under cross examination by John Pike, Selenski's lead defense attorney, Samson admitted to taking 20 hits of crack and drinking between eight to 10 beers the night of the alleged statement.

The carnival atmosphere was evident during the hearing:

Members of accused murderer Hugo Selenski's family have made T-shirts comparing Selenski's second double-murder trial to a rematch in a boxing rivalry.
The words on the shirts (Lupas vs. Hugo Round #2) places Selenski in one corner and Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas in the other.

And Hugo just can't shut up:

Lupas was presenting a crime-scene photo of Kerkowski's body to Selenski and his defense team when the first altercation occurred. "You're making a mockery of this court," Selenski said to Lupas as he handed over one photo. "No, you are," Lupas shouted back at Selenski. "This is a court of law," Lupas said. "This is a serious matter." About an hour later, the pair clashed again as Lupas handed over another piece of evidence. "No, you can't say anything to me," Lupas shouted at Selenski. "I didn't say a damn thing to you," Selenski fired back. "Leave me alone." "Why don't you sit there and keep your mouth shut," Lupas responded. "Keep smiling. Keep smiling."

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

The latest on Hugo

First the old news.

DA to seek death for Selenski, Weakley

Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas on Wednesday filed paperwork notifying Hugo Selenski and Paul Weakley that he intends to seek the death penalty against them in their trial for the deaths of Michael Kerkowski and Tammy Fassett.

Yes this is old news as it was first reported on that awful Nancy Grace show on Headline News. But at least the DA filed the paperwork this time.

Now we are back to Lupas vs. Olszewski. Forget Hugo, these two have been in a pissing contest for a while. Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr has smacked down Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas in this and other cases ever since Lupas was elected. Now Lupas is going after Olszewski and accusing him of misconduct via a law clerk and has asked for his removal from the case. Olszewski was the DA before Lupas and knows what a prosecutor should do. So when Lupas screws up he is hard on him. Some advice for Dave, don't pick a fight with a judge. On a side note Lupas was elected DA after raising and spending $ 750,000 on a platform to lock up all the drug dealers. That has been a real success.

The coverage in the local rags is interesting. The Times-Leader has quotes from everybody involved and the Citizens Voice only talked to Lupas.

The buck starts here

I didn't do it-Bart Simpson


Luzerne County District Attorney and Judge candidate had another case thrown out because of a technicality. Aren't lawyers supposed to dot the i's and cross the t's. This time a gun charge was dismissed because the DA's office violated the defendant's right to a speedy trial.

The gaffe in Jordan’s case was the latest in a series of errors by prosecutors that have recently cost them cases.

They previously lost felony charges against William P. Jenkins Jr. by failing to bring him to trial on time and then missing a deadline in an appeal of the case.

In December, the state Superior Court overturned the conviction of Kurt Keiper, who wrote more than $478,000 in bad checks, because he was not brought to trial in time.

And, on Wednesday, Lupas said Assistant District Attorney Frank Barletta failed to timely file a court document detailing appeal issues in the case of Linnea Holdren, a school teacher accused of allowing her son to take a gun to school. That means prosecutors might be precluded from raising those issues before the appellate court.

In the Holdren case he blamed the error on a secretary. It's never his fault. There have been other cases when an assistant DA hasn't even shown up in court resulting in the defendant walking.

The escape charges against Hugo Selenski were dismissed because of a paperwork error.

Having Bart Simpson as the DA is bad enough but do we really want this guy as a Judge.

Another view of Lupas and his number one:

The ringmaster and his No. 1 assistant say they are running for higher offices.
District Attorney Lupas has his sights set on becoming a judge, and Jacqueline Musto Carroll wants to replace him as district attorney.

We had a first-hand look at D.A. Lupas and his band of clowns. Our son, Tom Zielinski, and his girlfriend, Kim Potoski, were killed on July 21, 2005, by a hit-and-run driver. A 10-year-old daughter was left behind as a result of this tragedy.

The state police said the defendant, who fled the scene, was responsible for this accident and the police report verifies this by the accounts of three witnesses. The defendant was not charged with vehicular homicide.

To say this was a travesty of justice, after the defendant only received a one- to three-year sentence, would be a gross understatement. I wonder what he would have been charged with if he was one of their kids?

David Lupas and Jacqueline Carroll should be ashamed of themselves, not only as would-be professionals but as disgraces to the judicial system. Their lack of organization was only exceeded by their incompetence and pathetic work ethic.

However, if you read the newspapers, you are obviously aware of their track record.

Remember Tommy and Kim come election time.

Who will be the next Judge

Ask Hugo. Or his friends.

“He could say whatever he wants, I’m not the one running for judge.”-defense attorney John Pike

"No one I ever tried for murder was ever acquitted,”-Tom Marsilio

“My hat goes off to you, Mr. Lupas, You have to be a complete jerk.”- Hugo's Aunt

Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas has announced he is running for the new spot on the the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas after 8 years as the DA. These are two people who's futures are entwined. The chances are the case will come to trial in the summer and if Lupas gets a conviction he gets elected and if there is an aquittal he doesn't.

The latest argument is where Selenski will be housed during the run-up to the trial. My suggestion is that Hugo should move in with Lupas. I'm sure he can find a spare room and has a nice dining room with a big table that the defense can lay out all their documents without plexiglass in the way. Just lock up all the bedding.

With Lupas moving on a few people have declared they are running for DA. Only one has a website.

Election day in PA

I usually put up some predictions about the election in the weekend before along with my endorsements for what it's worth but this year I'm just not that excited. But why let that stop me. I'll start with contests I can vote in.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court and Superior Court

Flip a ten sided coin. I'm still not sure who I'm going to vote for when I wake up tomorrow although Tim McCormick's direct mail piece got my attention.

Act 1

It will probably pass in the Wilkes-Barre Area School District and many others. If your a senior home owner who lives on only Social Security it's a great deal. If your a working stiff that happens to own a home or rents you get screwed. And seniors who have pension, interest and investment income are in for a rude surprise. More than anything else I oppose this is because it will require filing yet another tax return.

Luzerne County Judge

Hold your nose and vote for Marsilio. The only reason he says he should be elected is that he is not Dave Lupas, good enough for me. I'm very surprised there aren't more candidates trying for this seat. The last time there was a judge seat open there was a slew of candidates including a guy named Nanda. I forgot his last name but I ended up voting for him after listening to him on the Sue Henry show. Judge's are supposed to be meticulous in their attention to detail and take responsibility for their decisions. Dave Lupas has had many cases dismissed because his office screwed up the paperwork then he blamed other people in his office for it. Sorry Dave, the fish stinks from the head down.


Luzerne County District Attorney

This one will be decided in the primary as no Republican is running. Jackie-Mo will romp to victory with the help of quasi-incumbency, lots of money from lots of lawyers and the Democratic Party endorsement. She's running on the same platform that Lupas did 8 years ago of locking up all the drug dealers and we all know that's turned out well. Since Dave Lupas was elected DA all the dealers have been locked up and there are no drugs in Luzerne County. Give me a fucking break. Vito DeLuca is easily the best choice for the job. He's been endorsed by the Times-Leader and State Rep John Yudichak is backing him.

Luzerne County Commissioner

Skrep and Petrilla will win the Democratic nominations. With Vondy riding off to head the Chamber of Commerce it leaves just one of the Bond Brothers to defend the record. 3 of the last 4 years the commissioners have had to float a bond just to meet payroll. They floated a bond to pay for a long overdue reassessment of property values and keep putting it off because it's an election year and they could pay for the extension because they had some left over bond money to pay for the delay. Then there is the "Life Transition Plan." They floated another bond to finance this plan that will cost $23 million over 15 years in the hope of saving $2+million if salaries are kept in check. I could go on all night but you get the idea. This is crazy. Now were looking at borrowing another $100 million to build a new prison. After the Pittston Juvenile Detention Center sweetheart deal do you want these people spending more of your money. Remember a bond is not free money but borrowing against future taxes.

I will vote for Steve Flood and Greg Gulick. I don't know much about Greg but his resume is sound. He's a long time local government official. I will vote for Steve Flood, even though he has been felled by a stroke, out of a sense of loyalty. He's a "bomb thrower and rabble rouser" that got results. Every employee of the county that is or will be eligible for a pension owes him a debt of gratitude.

Staeve Urban will win one of the Republican nominations and I predict Bill Jones will get the other.

Sheriff

Barry Stankus is the incumbent Republican officeholder. Isn't that a strange phrase. He'll win in the fall because he's done a good job. Mike Savokinas is the endorsed Democratic candidate running against George "Nipper" Nowakowski who has run for this office a few times before as a Republican. Nipper said he would appoint former Sheriff Carl " look out for that dog" Zawatski as his deputy. I vote for Savokinas.

Coroner

Another race that will be decided in the primary. Dr. Jack will win but I like both challengers. Plymouth funeral director Jim Desiderio has hit the party cicuit and I like his version of embalming fluid. But Mrs. G is leaning toward John Corcoran.

Other races I'm watching are the Philly Mayors race. Go Nutter. What a great name for a politician. But I met Dwight Evans many years ago and hope he wins. I'm pulling for Corey O'Brien in the Lackawanna County Commissioners race and hope Cordaro goes down. My old friend Errol Flynn is running for judge in Wayne County and Mario Fiorucci should be the next Mayor of Sugar Notch

Tom Marsilio for Luzerne County judge

The race for the 10th judicial seat in Luzerne County will become clearer after this week: Two potential candidates plan to announce their intentions regarding the race.
Attorney Tom Marsilio will formally announce his candidacy for Luzerne County judge Wednesday at 4 p.m. in the rotunda of the Luzerne County Courthouse, he confirmed.

Marsilio ran against David Lupas for District Attorney in 1999 and was swamped by money and false promises. I think his downfall was the campaign slogan, "An Officer and a Gentleman." It's hard to take someone seriously when they use the title of a soppy Richard Gere movie in a political campaign.

Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas, who is expected to run as well, will announce his intentions 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the Wilkes-Barre Ramada Inn. Lupas would not say if he’ll run for re-election as district attorney or seek a judgeship.“I’ll make that clear Thursday,” he said.

So Lupas is playing coy with the press. Like anyone who pays attention doesn't know he's running for Judge. I hope he's better prepared for this announcement than he is for some of his trials.

Hugoland

Dave Iseman had a funny column in Friday's TL:

Just when you thought the news about Hugo Selenski couldn't get any weirder, the prosecutor is trying to prosecute the judge. District Attorney Dave Lupas says Judge Peter Paul Olszewski is biased in favor of Hugo, an ex-con suspected of doing more bad things than maybe anyone who ever lived in Luzerne County. Lupas says Peter Paul showed favoritism toward the defense in Hugo's first trial when Hugo was acquitted of double-murder charges. So, Lupas argues, Olszewski shouldn't be permitted to preside over a second trial involving different double-murder charges.

Ah, Hugoland, where the intrigue never ends.

He then recounts all the twists and turns this case has taken from the initial big dig in his backyard, a PSU student who went missing in a bunny costume on Halloween, the escape using bedsheets only to have him turn up at his house, then the escape charges getting tossed because the DA is incompetent, Hugo's house being sold to Free Hugo "T-shirts."

Then the DA and some of the families of the victims attacked one one of the finest men I have ever known, Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr., as being biased in favor of the defense. They want him to recuse himself from the case and today they got their wish.

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) -Granting a request by prosecutors, a judge recused himself Wednesday from the murder trial of a convicted bank robber who lived on property where authorities found as many as 12 sets of human remains.
Luzerne County Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. strongly defended himself against attacks from county prosecutors but concluded that the "greater good" required him to step down.

Be careful what you wish for Mr. District Attorney, Chet Muroski knows what the job of the DA is. If you lose this case Mr. Lupas I suggest you go back to locking up all the drug dealers like you promised in your first campaign. We all know what a success that has been.

A deal for Hugo?

Hugo Selenski wrote a letter to the Citizens Voice that they decided not to publish but did a story on it. Kinda lame, they should publish it. The most newsworthy thing is the charge that Jackie-Mo offered a deal:

I’ll give you something to ponder by taking you back to early 2005,” Selenski wrote. “Jackie Musto Carroll walked up to attorney Demetrius Fannick in the courthouse and said, ‘Tim, is there any possibility of a plea agreement with Hugo? Dave (Lupas) knows his career is over if he loses this case.’ That sounds like a politically loaded question that only cares about furthering careers rather than being a protector of Luzerne County.”

And Lupas ' opponent, Tom Marsillio, for the Judge seat keeps hammering away at him. The Mary Leo ad is emotional and deceptive as a commentor on the TL website points out:

A Lupas ad claims he was responsible for the capture and conviction of the murderer of Mary Leo. I thought W-B PD caught him when he was linked to a stolen cell phone and then the guy confessed to the Leo murder. There was nothing to go to trial; he confessed. Just curious.

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

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.

Luzerne County DA race

Nanticoke-area Attorney Vito DeLuca is running for District Attorney and so is First Assistant District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll . Both CV articles are full of quotes from local political guru Ed Mitchell pointing out the obvious saying if Dave Lupas decides to seek re-election they will both bow out. I got news for you Ed, Dave Lupas is running for Judge. Like you don't already know that and haven't drawn up the campaign plan. It should be a nice piece of change as you also know he spent 750 grand on his first run for DA.

Back to the announced candidates. Lupas' deputy with the 3 names, Jackie Musto Carroll- Musto, where have I heard that before?-has announced her intention to run for the top spot in the office. What a record to defend. A nice Irish name like Vito DeLuca is hard to resist. He has a life of trial experience and has been a public defender. More to come.

Fumble and recovery

Lupas pursues Hugo escape charges

Luzerne County District Attorney Dave Lupas continued his efforts to bring escape charges against double homicide suspect Hugo Selenski after a judge threw out the charges on a technicality in February.
Selenski, who is currently awaiting trial in connection with the slayings of pharmacist Michael Kerkowski and Tammy Fassett, escaped from the Luzerne County Correctional Facility in October 2003 by climbing out of a window with a rope made from bedsheets.
But Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. threw out the escape charges, saying prosecutors did not bring Selenski to trial within 365 days, as prescribed by law.

There are rules and the DA didn't follow them. It seems like it's a waist of time to pursue this when the guy is on trial for murder. Unless Lupas doesn't think he will get a conviction in this case either.

Hugo's house is sold

Who would want it? I guess if you live in New Jersey next to oil refineries and toxic waste dumps a few bodies in the back yard is no big deal.

WNEP: The home where accused murder Hugo Selenski lived sold Thursday morning at auction.
The place in Luzerne County went to a New Jersey couple for $160,000. The home comes with a notorious past. It was the backyard of the home near Dallas where the remains of five people turned up three years ago. Selenski lived there with his former girlfriend.
The government seized the property during the probe "because of its connection to illegal activity," according to Luzerne County District Attorney Dave Lupas.
Selenski has a new address. He is in prison on murder charges.

The DA that couldn't get a conviction is upset about all the attention.

TL: “Rather than just glorifying that this was the property that Mr. Selenski lived in and making light of what may be unearthed or uncovered in the back yard. … Dead murdered, human beings were dug up from that property. That’s fact,” District Attorney David Lupas said. “People need to know that.”

Lupas is unsure if his office will get a slice of the proceeds.

Payback

Here we go as predicted.

The new Luzerne County Controller Maryanne Petrilla
has her marching orders and will team up with the commissioners and will screw with outgoing Controller Steve Flood as much as possible. Steve had some unflattering things to say about the previous pension fund managers and they sued him. He didn't accuse them of burning down their grandmother's house but pointed out they were not up to the job using some very colorful language. It's a bullshit lawsuit that should be dismissed on first admendment grounds but this is Luzerne County. If you want to silence your critics sue them and ruin them financially.

Then District Attorney, now Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr proved that point when he sued WILK radio host Fred Williams. At the time I thought it was very thin skinned reaction to a radio hothead and would just call attention to his allegations. But he won and Fred is no longer on the radio.

I miss Fred, I didn't agree with him most of the time but he did a good job of covering local issues. The only AM station that is even doing local content is WILK, but not much. I know some people don't like Kevin and Nancy in the morning but it at least gives you a counterpoint to the rest of the shit you hear from Rush and Hannity all day long. Sue Henry's show is interesting but I rarely get a chance to listen.

I know I'm rambling.

One thing I like about Olszewski is the way he holds the DA Dave Lupas to account. Lupas has not done a good job so far in the Hugo Selinski case. Most of the defense attorneys I know say he is not a very good lawyer and Judge Olszewski seems to know that. You remember Lupas, he spent $750,000 to get elected DA promising to lock up all the drug dealers, that's worked out well.

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.

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

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.