Some stories are almost too unbelievable to be true. Unfortunately, this one isn't. A Pennsylvania judge, Mark Ciavarella was convicted by a jury in February (2011) of federal felony charges of fraud and tax evasion. Ciavarella, with fellow judge Michael Conahan used their influence to direct county contracts from the county owned juvenile detention center to private detention centers, and then sentenced juveniles to spend lengthy sentences and detention for first offenses at a rate that was twice the state average. For their trouble the judges received cash payments from the private detention centers, PA Child Care and Western PA Child Care, through a local attorney named Robert Powell.
Judge Ciavarella became known for harsh sentences for juveniles, requiring lengthy detention in his benefactor's private jail and for first offenders who would not normally be locked away for any period. Probation officers and prosecutors who asked for lighter sentences were ignored. Defense lawyers in the area told potential clients not to bother hiring them, they would not be allowed to speak. Trials often just took a few minutes, as justice ceased to exist in Ciavarella's courtroom. More like a monarch ruling according to his whims than a public servant, Ciavarella would tell the private detention center workers in advance how many juveniles they would be receiving that day, before their trials took place.
Like pigs at the trough these Judges and their intermediate Powell received Fedex boxes stuffed full of cash. Business was so good for the private detention centers that the Judges received about $2.6 million in cash total. The Judges had so much money that they set up a fake business to hide it, and acquired a half million dollar condo in Florida. They also purchased a 52 foot boat named "Reel Justice" they kept near their condo.
Investigations began after the Juvenile Law Center raised the issue. The FBI and IRS were involved. The two Judges were charged in January 2009. In July of 2009, the Judges appeared before the District Court to enter a plea agreement which would have required them to spend seven years in prison. Their Judge, Edwin Kosik, was not satisfied that with their conduct and did not believe they were remorseful. He rejected the plea agreement. Ciavarella and Conahan withdrew their guilty pleas and were tried by a jury on 48 charges. Conahan entered another plea agreement in July of 2010. On February 18, 2011 Ciavarella was found guilty on 12 of those counts and faces a minimum of 13 years in prison under sentencing guidelines.
Crimes that are committed by public officials in a position of trust and power are among the most heinous. A person in this position, like Judges Ciavarella and Conahan abuse the trust and power given to them. That abuse led to the unnecessary and unlawful detention of thousands of juveniles during the years that the kids for cash scandal was in motion. Imagine taking your child to court and having the judge order him or her to a juvenile jail, even for minor and first offenses. There is nothing that you can do as the child is taken away. The child, who should be the most protected individuals in a just society, are jailed, their freedom deprived, so that the Judge can make continue to line their pockets.
All of the parties have been found guilty of criminal charges, including Robert Powell and the owner of the private detention centers (Robert Mericle). They were charged with financial crimes, including racketeering and fraud.
Why weren't they charged for the unlawful imprisonment of all those children? Wasn't each incarceration a holding of the person against their will? That is the crime of abduction, or kidnapping. Abduction charges carry a lot more time than financial fraud or tax evasion, and there are thousands of counts of abduction. Weren't those children handcuffed, shackled, transported and moved by police or detention employees? That unwanted physical contact is a battery under criminal law. Each of these defendants are criminally liable for thousands of assault and batteries against those children.
These disgraced and disbarred former judges are lucky that only the financial aspect of their crimes were punished, and that they did not receive the punishment they deserved for the illegal deprival of freedom they inflicted on the very children to whom they were supposed to administer justice.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kids_for_cash_scandal
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