Crooked PA Judge Receives 28-Year Prison Sentence For Selling Kids to Jails Posted on August 7, 2013 by Joshua De Leon • Mark Ciavarella, former judge in Luzerne County, PA, received a 28-year prison sentence after being found guilty of racketeering. Ciavarella accepted bribes from a private prison contractor to convict young blacks and have them sent to for-profit juvenile detention centers in what became known as a “cash for kids” scheme. During the course of the scandal, Ciavarella made over $1 million to keep the privately-owned juvenile centers packed. Upon his conviction, all 4,000 convictions given by Ciavarella were dismissed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on the grounds of him violating constitutional rights, like the right to legal counsel. In an amoral pursuit of money, the former judge gave excruciatingly heavy-handed sentences for insignificant crimes. On one occasion, he gave a teenage girl a three-month jail sentence for making a MySpace page that “mocked her school’s assistant principal.” A three month sentence for making fun of someone is absurd and absolutely unwarranted. Some of the children that Ciavarella sentenced to jail were as young as 10-years old, who were mostly accused of petty crimes. Ciavarella filed an appeal before the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia, but the three-judge panel upheld the 28-year prison sentence, originally given by U.S. District Judge Edwin Kosik. The panel highly praised Kosik’s ruling against Ciavarella’s corruption, calling it “fair and impartial.” Citizens also heralded the conviction and sentence. One man, Robert Wojack of Yatesville, wrote a letter to Kosik that said the sentencing was “of paramount importance.” Ciavarella had a reputation of being “harsh and autocratic” on the bench. This former judge abused the power with which the state of Pennsylvania entrusted him. Because he lined his pockets at the expense of minors and their families, every day of the sentence is justified. His wife filed for divorce in May.
Posted on: Thu, 24 Oct 2013 02:57:57 +0000