Checking In On The Judge
The plot thickens in the accident investigation surrounding former Luzerne County President Judge, Chester Muroski. The man in the black robe slid off a slippery Route 115 in Bear Creek Township earlier this week damaging his car and taking out a mailbox.

He vehemently denies that he was intoxicated but the media has been all over him since he declared that he had “one, maybe two” drinks at a Kingston bistro shortly before the accident.

In a bizarre twist of events, a second accident occurred today just 100 feet from where Chester had his. Only this time it was fatal. A 39 year old Bear Creek Township woman was killed when she lost control of her SUV and slid into the path of an oncoming car. She died and two people in the other car, one of which was a first grader, is suffering from severe injuries. This proves that winter weather and Route 115 are not a good mix.

WNEP-TV reported earlier today that the judge may be charged with failure to notify police and the owner of “unattended property” that damage was done to such property. The property in this instance was the mailbox that Muroski’s car slid into. According to the report, Chet could face 90 days in jail or a $300 fine.

When I lived on Route 115, PennDot took out my mailbox at least once each winter during snow plowing and I never received a dime from them, and they never told me they smashed my mailbox. If you use reverse logic here, could PennDot fall under this same “unattended property” law?

I don’t think the judge will see jail tame or receive a fine. Everyone should just be thankful that there were no serious injuries and move on.

Jesus Buys Only The Best
On another note, in a story appearing in Friday’s Times Leader, reporter Jerry Lynott has a story on the recent opening of Tony Stella’s Good Fellos in the the former Mayfair Supper Club / Bella Vino / Stultz’s Buffet.

Big Tony closed his long-time establishment in Exeter and moved into the larger space on Route 315 in Pittston late last year. Known for meals running around a C-Note a head, Tony’s got a hell of a lot more tables to fill at his new location than his old, and with prices that high in this economy it will be interesting to see if it was worth the risk of moving. Reviews that I’ve heard so far have been mixed. Those who dined at his Exeter location say this new place “just isn’t the same” while others are thrilled.

I dine at some of the finest restaurants from Palm Beach to Miami every night of the week alongside celebrities and some of America’s wealthiest individuals and I don’t pay a hundred bucks a head for a meal. (My bar bill on the other hand is another story.) I would never expect to pay that kind of money to eat at a place in Pittston, Pennsylvania!

Tony gives some of the credit for his longevity in the restaurant biz to none other than Jesus himself. “I believe in Christ. I buy the best products money can buy and give the best service with a great crew.” Will agnostics like myself be welcome at Good Fellos? Absolutely, after all Tony takes American Express.

Another Goes Down
Finally, word is out that the next indictment has been handed down in the ongoing corruption probe in Luzerne County. Shortly before 3pm today, I received word from several high placed, credible sources that a prominent attorney, who will remain nameless, resigned from his firm and signed a plea deal with Uncle Sam.

The dapper dude often seen in his high priced luxury car sporting a George Hamilton-like tan while a young blonde with fake breasts hangs off his side, is ready to face stark reality. His next court appearance will be not as the one defending, but the one looking to be defended.

Let your fingers do the walking through the yellow pages under “Attorneys At Law” and draw your own conclusion as to who the latest gangster is from the description above – or wait till the story hits the news.

Just remember you heard it here first and if you followed me on Twitter or Facebook you would have heard about it even sooner!

Maybe Tony Stella could put a good word in for Mr. Attorney with Jesus. He’s gonna need all the help he can get.

He almost made it.

“He” is former Luzerne County President Judge and now Senior Judge, Chester Muroski and he almost made it into retirement without making headlines. But slick roads and “one, maybe two” drinks did him in.

I was going to let Chester’s moment in the spotlight pass by. After all, this is the guy who was left to clean up the mess after former judges turned scumbag gangsters, Mark Ciaverella and Michael Conahan, joined the ranks of criminals and were thrown off the bench in what the media calls the “Kids for Cash Scandal.” But the reporters and talk show hosts in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton are having a field day with this one, and in my opinion are going overboard. It’s almost like they haven’t had any courthouse arrests to report and talk on, so they manufacture a news story where one doesn’t exist.

Here’s the story in a nutshell. Chet got done swearing in the Courtdale mayor. After taking the oath, the judge heads over to Bistro on the Ave in Kingston to celebrate with what he said was “one, maybe two” drinks. On the way home his car slides off the road on an icy Route 115 in Bear Creek and takes out a mailbox. A passer-by spots the car off the road, calls 911 and after 15 or so minutes takes the judge to his home leaving the car there. In the mean time the police come, write their report and the car is taken to a garage for repair. (For the exact timeline of events, see this article.)

Having lived in Bear Creek for a few years I experienced many a harrowing drive up and down the mountain in the winter. I once did a complete 360 in an all-wheel-drive BMW sedan with just a thin cover of snow on the road. It’s a dangerous stretch of pavement that is steep, windy and not taken care of very well in the winter, but for those who live up there it’s the only way in and out of Dodge.

I believe Chester’s story, and for the record, I don’t know him, never met him and I doubt he knows me. If I thought there was any special treatment given to him by any law enforcement agency, I’d be all over it like stink on a monkey (where did that expression come from?), but I just don’t get all the attention that’s focused on a simple weather related auto accident..

I don’t buy the accusations that he was drunk behind the wheel. If he’s telling the truth, and I sincerely believe he is, “one, maybe two” drinks isn’t enough to make one so impaired that they can’t drive. One or two martini’s doesn’t impair me, but six or more, and I’ll hand over the keys.

I remember one sunny summer afternoon, I’m sitting in my house in Bear Creek when out of the blue I hear a loud bang and look out front and my mailbox was gone and a car was wrapped around a tree in my neighbor’s front yard. The driver was killed, suicide if I remember correctly, and the story never made it past an obituary in the paper two days later. I also recall many, and I mean MANY, cars landing in my front yard on a snowy morning and not one made headlines. Muroski slides off an icy road and we’ve got panic in the streets.

Maybe something else will come out later, but I doubt it. Like I said earlier, with the lack of arrests in the courthouse the past couple weeks, the news outlets are looking for stories of politicos that they can trump up to get people to listen to their talk show, watch their newscast and buy their papers.

He almost made it.

If the snow didn’t come and the roads weren’t slick, Chester Muroski would have slid into history as the judge credited with righting the ship right before the M.S. Luzerne County Justice was getting ready to sink below the horizon. Instead he slid into a mailbox and the village idiots lit their torches and stormed the streets hunting for a witch who just isn’t there.

January 7, 2010 – As an update to this story, the Times Leader reports:

BEAR CREEK TWP. – A woman was killed in a two vehicle crash on state Route 115 Thursday morning, state police at Wyoming said.

The name of the woman has not been released pending notification of family.

Trooper Tom Kelly said two vehicles, a Subaru and a Ford Escape, collided on Route 115, near Pittston Boulevard at about 8:40 a.m.

Kelly said the Subaru was traveling north on Route 115 and slid on black ice into the southbound lane where it collided into the Ford Escape.

A woman and a 7-year old child in the Ford were taken to area hospitals, Kelly said.

Several trucks from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation were seen spreading salt on Route 115.

The fatal accident happened about 100 yards north from where Luzerne County Senior Judge Chester Muroski said he slid off Route 115 and into mailboxes Monday night.

Route 115 in both northbound and southbound lanes of travel between Old East End Boulevard is closed to traffic.

The Times Leader is reporting what I referred to as “The Christmas Present” that I spoke about in my November 11, 2009 blog post. I was tipped off by a source deep within the county that today’s event was coming and that it was going to be “the Christmas present Luzerne County was waiting for.”

Ladies and gentlemen, Greg Skrepenak has plead GUILTY to accepting a bribe in the ongoing corruption probe in Luzerne County. While the details on this story are still emerging, many have to wonder if this has to do with the construction of the juveline center or something else.

One thing that we can all be happy is that the biggest bozo in the history of Luzerne County government is out. And if that’s not a Christmas present we can all be thankful for, I don’t know what is.

South Florida is quickly turning into the Ponzi Scheme capital of the world. First there was Bernie Madoff, now there’s Scott Rothstein. Rothstein is accused of running a $1.2 billion scheme as well as creating a web of business interests and investments that the feds are currently clawing their way through. In addition to screwing hundreds of investors, he’s also an attorney. Well, he’s not one anymore.

Photo: Florida Sun Sentinel

I said to myself, “How freaking coincidential is this?” The coincidence is that just yesterday, Luzerne County Judge Michael Toole was charged with honest services fraud for “secretly communicating[ed] with a plaintiff’s attorney to appoint a person that attorney had sought as a neutral arbitrator in an uninsured motorist case…Unbeknownst to the insurance company, Toole had a “long standing financial relationship” with the attorney, identified as “participant #1,” the complaint says. – TimesLeader.com”

This “great lawyer” did indeed “know the judge” and both worked to feather each other’s nests while throwing all honesty and integrity to the wind.

I’m beginning to wonder if there are any honest people in the business of lawyering and judging any more. I always respected members of the legal community as these were the people we looked to, to uphold justice and keep us on the straight and narrow. But now I have my doubts.

Granted there are plenty of honest, ethical and respectible members of the bench and bar and I have to believe that scum like Conahan, Civarella, Toole and Rothstein are those few bad apples in the bottom of the barrel. But I have to think about the young people who are taught to respect the legal system and abide by it suddenly seeing the very people they’re told to respect get led away in handcuffs.

What kind of message is that sending?

We all knew it was coming.

I wrote about it, news outlets fed the speculation, talk radio lines were buzzing and it was all just a matter of time.

“It” was the guilty plea entered by yet another Luzerne County Judge. The third gangster judge, and the 20th person, to be charged in the ongoing federal corruption probe currently being conducted in Luzerne County. This time, it was Michael Toole.

If you recall, Toole made headlines a few weeks ago when he cleared his court schedule for the rest of the year in order to take “vacation.” When his calendar was suddenly empty speculation ran rampant, “Could he be next?”

Like I said, we all knew it was coming.

According to arrest papers, Toole “secretly communicated with an attorney to determine who that attorney wished to have appointed as a neutral arbitrator in an underinsured motorist case.” The attorney, who I’m told is a prominent ambulance chaser but is only identified as “Participant #1,” gave Toole free use of a New Jersey beach house without disclosing that when assigned the case.

Your dis-honor is also charged with tax evasion for failing to report a $30,000 “referral fee” he received from another unnamed attorney. Referral fee? For a judge? Can someone spell “conflict of interest?”
Toole can spend up to 23 years in the lock-up for his shenanigans while on the bench. I say, send him away today.

Toole joins fellow gangster judges Mark “Scooch” Ciavarella and Michael “Big Mike” Conahan in the Corrupt Judges Hall of Fame. Scooch and Big Mike have pled guilty to accepting cash in return for locking up juveniles in detention centers they were getting kickbacks from.

One thing that bothers me in the Toole case is that Toole signed the plea agreement in late September, however, he still presided over cases until he was officially charged today. Something seems wrong with that? Who allowed a judge, who we can now call a criminal, to continue to hear court cases after he plead guilty to these charges?

I happened to listen to a local radio talk show today where a few Toole supporters (can you believe there are such people?) called in to say, “Mike’s a nice guy.” I couldn’t believe what I was listening to! The guy is a gangster. Gangsters aren’t nice guys.

There is not one person in the world who can justify the actions of these three men who were elected to uphold the laws which are the foundation of this nation’s justice system. They wielded power that is reserved for only a select few and they used that power for unjust enrichment.

Their crimes were based on greed.

Their punishment will be based on the guidelines they used to sentence by.

And ain’t that ironic.

Thanksgiving. The day of the year that officially kicks off the holiday season where we’re all supposed to stop and give pause to everything we’re thankful for. It’s also the day where every business you’ve bought something from within the past 365 days sends you an email thanking you for being one of their valuable customers.

For me, Thanksgiving is nothing more than another annoying day of the year where I have to “spend time” with “the family” while everyone argues about who did what, why so and so can never be on time for dinner, why the potatoes are cold and who is to blame for voting Obama into office.

This year, I pledged not to host any holiday meals at my house. Not Thanksgiving, not Christmas Eve, not Christmas Day, not even New Years. This is a reversal from the past when I actually wanted to do this. Not any more. I’ve resigned myself to the belief that planning these things takes way too much effort for very little return.

As I’m writing this, I’m on a plane heading from Del Boca Vista to Pennsylvania where I’m scheduled to have dinner at my father’s house. I wanted to stay in Florida for the holiday, however my oldest brother has this warped view of “family” that just doesn’t hold its place in 2009. He envisions the perfect Donna Reed dinner where everyone smiles, says “please” and “thank you” when food is passed and we all enjoy the company of each other.

The reality is much different. What will end up happening is he will fight with my father about who is going to carve the turkey, chase my father out of the kitchen for lifting lids on pots checking to see if the beans are done, yell at my other brother and me for making off-color remarks and we’ll all leave full, but not wanting to see each other until next Thanksgiving.

So, I’m sitting in 2F preparing myself for the day that lies ahead and checking my bag to make sure I brought the Xanax to help me through the day.

But before I put the laptop away, I wanted to offer my own gesture of thanks for the things I’m most thankful for this holiday.

I’m thankful for duct tape. That magical, yet strong, adhestive tape that gets those of us who are not mechanically inclined out of so many troublesome situations. It also comes in handy on flights like today’s where kids are screaming. A little across the mouth and even the noisiest of flights can be quiet again.

I’m thankful for the lack of traffic heading to the airport this morning. Usually I-95 from Boca to Lauderdale is a mess this time of the morning with people heading to work, but on this Thanksgiving, I was one of about 50 vehicles on the road which made my 20 minute drive last 3 minutes less than normal.

I’m thankful for the federal government. No, no, no, not the guys in Washington, they’re all crooks. I’m talking about the Feds who are currently rooting out the criminal politicians in Luzerne County, PA. They nailed gangster judges Mark Ciavirella and Michael Conahan in the “kids for cash” scandal which will net these former upholders of the legal system prolapsed rectums after their stint in prison, as well as 17 other individuals who got too greedy. Jail time for a $1,500 tailor made suit? Only here folks. Only here.

I’m thankful for Farmville. I’m thankful I never even spent one second collecting sheep or whatever you do when you have way too much time on your hands or just want to steal time from the company while you browse Facebook at work.

I’m thankful for Twitter. Where else can I tell people what I’m doing in 120 characters or less. Mind numbing yes, but do people really care if I’m sitting at a bar next to a crossdresser named Louie (aka Louise) telling me about his/her/its upcoming gender reassignment surgery?

I’m thankful for Xanax, Lisinopril, Crestor, Lexapro, Cialis and Prilosec. Without my daily intake of these wonder-drugs I would be even more miserable than I already am. And who would want that?

I’m thankful for English as a Second Language. Without this program, the individual who rear-ended me on I-95 a few weeks ago would have never been able to tell the state trooper he was talking on his cell phone and not paying attention when he slammed into me in stopped traffic.

I’m thankful for airbags. As in the airbags that never deployed despite being hit by the above mentioned individual who was traveling about 45 mph at the time of impact. Special thanks to Ford Motor Company for that extra special treatement as well. Now I drive a BMW.

I’m thankful for Microsoft. Without them I would have never discovered the joys of the Mac. But I do miss the “blue screen of death” it always comforted me to know that Bill Gates hates me so much that he would make my computer crash just as I was finishing that report that took me 4 hours and never auto-saved.

I’m thankful for GoGoInflight. Without it my twice weekly, 2-hour flights to and from Florida would actually seem like 2-hour flights.

I’m thankful I have a Gulfstream V. I’m also thankful that AirTran charges me $12,431.00 less to get me back and forth to Florida.

I’m thankful that I’m dillusional at times. It makes life so much more interesting.

I’m thankful for purchasing ActiveFunShop.com. I never envisioned myself being a purveyor of sex toys, but it did inspire me to pick the title of my upcoming book which chronicles my life and business adventures. “From Ferret Clothes to Cock Rings.” Look for it at a book store near you in 2010.

I’m thankful for Rich Connor. He’s the owner/publisher/editor/janitor/go-to-guy at the WIlkes-Barre Times Leader. Only Rich could get sued by a competitor and settle out of court with his punishment being that he has to write a “letter of apology” to the other paper’s readers. Rich, I need your lawyers. Plus, you owe me a steak dinner at your house, like an elephant, I never forget.

On a serious note, this year has been one that I will never forget and one that I want to forget. It’s been a year of triumph and despair. I went from riding high following the sale of one of my businesses to a publically traded company to hitting rock bottom when my best friend and partner of 16 years left me.

When I thought that I wouldn’t be able to go on without him and things looked grim, I challenged myself to start over, to reinvent myself and begin a new life without looking back, without regret and with all eyes on the future. I would have never, ever, been able to accomplish this without the help, support and ears of so many friends and family members. I’m not going to mention them by name here, because I don’t want to inadvertenly leave anyone out, but you know who you are.

I’m thankful for Kleenex. Because I still cry. I cry a lot. But I smile too, knowing that life isn’t that bad. Knowing that life does indeed go on. And knowing that there are many, many things to be thankful for even if they’re going to be annoying the hell out of me at dinner in about five hours.

Last week I wrote about former Luzerne County deputy clerk Bill Brace and how “Big Billy” was the 19th politician to plead guilty to corruption. Brace got nailed for accepting a $1,500 custom tailored suit in exchange for making sure a contractor secured a contract with the county.

This week things have gotten interesting and speculation is running wild with the latest developments that occurred over the past few days.

First, former restaurant owner, turned dead-beat, Jeff Piazza resigned suddenly from a job at the Wilkes-Barre Career & Technical Center where he was making a pretty good salary. This is the same Piazza who is son of politically connected Auggie Piazza and is the same Piazza who defaulted on a county loan for over a hunded-grand from his failed restaurant venture. He’s also the same Piazza who was hired by Anthony Trombetta, who is the subject of several county contracts that are under the microscope, to work in his ill-fated restaurant venture. (Restaurant owners note: Don’t hire Jeff, he’s bad luck.)

Care to speculate on what’s going on there?

Then on Monday, county HR director Doug Richards resigns from his $71k a year job saying he’s taking a job in the private sector. Dougie is under scrutiny for awarding a no-bid contract to Continental Consulting Group Inc. of New York City, who is now being investigated by a federal grand jury. Continental was paid $807,770 in 2007-2008 to process payroll payments to county contract employees. Then in a twist of fate, County Commissioner Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla today issues a statement saying Richards has been fired.

According to the Times Leader newspaper, Petrilla questioned Richards about “issues facing Luzerne County” and he refused to answer. Earth to Maryanne…. shouldn’t you have been asking questions all along? Where were you when that contract was awarded? How did a contract get awarded to a company without commissioner approval? Were you on a deserted island with Gilligan and the Skipper while all this was going on?

Care to speculate some more?

Wait. Not yet. As all this is unfolding, county Judge Michael Toole clears his calendar and reschedules the rest of his November court cases to December and January. President Judge Chester Murowski called this move “unexpected.” It’s hard not to speculate on what’s going on here considering Toole’s tipstaff testified before a federal grand jury earlier this year. Two county judges are already facing hefty jail terms for accepting bribes in the “Kids for Cash” scandal that rippled through the county and has been featured in the national media and even in a Michael Moore film.

One has to wonder what exactly is going on in Luzerne County. Judges, elected officials, school directors, high ranking officials – they’ve all been taken down so far in the ongoing investigation into public corruption.

But when will it end?

Who is going to be next?

Don’t blink, you may miss the next takedown!

AUDIO VERSION OF THIS ARTICLE AVAILABLE!

Big Billy Brace all smiles in his $1,500 tailor-made suit that just landed him a prison sentence.

Brace plead guilty today to accepting a $1,500 tailor-made suit in exchange for helping a contractor win a contract with Luzerne County.

“Big Billy” was so happy to receive his reward that he took a road trip to New York City to meet with a tailor so he could be custom fitted.

Paulie Walnuts, always the dapper dresser, would be proud.

Now, let’s look a little into “Big Billy’s” past. He first started taking taxpayer money in 1971 when he landed a job for the City of Wilkes-Barre and retired as the city’s chief clerk in 2001. 17 days after retirement he landed a job as deputy to the county Clerk of Courts. In 2005 he landed another county job when he took a position as chief clerk for the county commissioners. Then in 2008 he moved up to the state level by becoming the local registrar for the Bureau of Vital Statistics.

“Big Billy” has been living off the taxpayers for years.

According to the Times Leader archives, Brace earns about $60k a year in his registrar job and also collects a $42k a year pension from the city plus full health benfits until he’s six feet under. He also receives an undisclosed amount from his county pension and will also receive a state pension from his latest stint. Chances are “Big Biilly” could be pulling down about $150k a year plus benefits when he fully retires.

When he resigned from county government, Luzerne County Commissioner Maryanne Petrilla, who is about as trustworthy and loyal as a pet rattle-snake, said, “He always has stepped to the plate no matter what the situation has been. We’ve had some troubling times in the county and Bill has been a great friend and a great public servant.”

Maryanne, how are you feeling about this “great public servant” now? What about the other 18 “great public servants” who have been nabbed in this corruption probe?

The 18 other criminals nabbed so far include judges, school board presidents, attorneys and business owners. I’ve heard from very reliable sources that there are more coming, including a big “Christmas present” arrest.

The story of “Big Billy” Brace is nothing new. Billy got a suit, a Wilkes-Barre area school director got free carpeting, teachers got jobs for handing over cash, and juveniles got remanded for prison in exchange for former judges Michael Conahan and Mark “Scooch” Ciavarella collecting $2.5 million in kickbacks.

Like a septic tank that’s in bad need of pumping, the scum keeps rising to the top in Luzerne County as the feds are there to skim them up. “Big Billy” should lose every pension he has coming, should be fired immediately from his state job, and be removed from the city’s health insurance. But, we’ll have to see what happens there, don’t expect too much.

I just hope Billy wears that $1,500 custom tailored suit for his court hearing and remains with him as his prison uniform and a reminder of his criminal past.

Is it Maryanne Petrilla or Todd Vonderheid in drag? The Luzerne County webmaster needs to fix!

Note to the Luzerne County website webmaster, you may want to check the link for Marianne Petrilla’s bio. I don’t think she would want to have anything to do with former commissioner Todd Vonderheid, I know I wouldn’t want to!

Maryanne’s bio is on this page:
http://www.luzernecounty.org/county/commissioners/todd_a_vonderheid

Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. (first on left) is shown with a convicted drug dealer (second from right) and a crooked judge, Mike Conahan (last on right)

Four guys smiling, having a few drinks together.

The only problem was, two of the guys were judges, one an attorney and one a convicted drug dealer.

It was a Molotov cocktail in the making.

One of the judges in the now infamous photo was none other than gangster judge Mike Conahan who is awaiting trial in the “kids for cash” scandal that resounded throughout Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. Conahan is off the bench and soon will be spending time in federal prison, the other is Peter Paul Olszewski Jr., who was running for retention in yesterday’s general election.

The picture surfaced in late September and made it into the Citizens Voice newspaper. It was then that I knew Peter Paul was done. There wasn’t a thing he could do to save himself. As I wrote in my blog post, Peter Paul said the photo was circulated “to embarass him”. No Peter Paul, it was done to alert the voters in the county that your circle of friends is questionable.

In the end, 55.5% of voters said “No” to retaining Peter Paul and come January, he’ll vacate the chambers he dolled out justice in since 1999. An educated, well mannered, intelligent, young man just had his career killed because of a photo. And more importantly, because of the company he keeps.