Luzerne County Government

April 2, 2010

County wants out of suits

Motion filed in federal court to get Luzerne County dismissed from juvenile suits.

Times Leader staff

SCRANTON – Attorneys for Luzerne County filed a motion Thursday that seeks to formally dismiss the county from two federal lawsuits filed by hundreds of juveniles who allege they were wrongly incarcerated as part of a conspiracy orchestrated by former judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan.

The motion seeks to remove the county as a defendant based on two prior rulings that were issued in November and March by U.S. District Judge A. Richard Caputo.

Caputo ruled the county could not be held liable for actions taken by Ciavarella and Conahan because the ex-jurists were employees of the state court system, not the county.

Ciavarella and Conahan are awaiting trial in federal court on a 48-count indictment that charges them with racketeering, bribery, extortion, mail fraud and other offenses. Federal prosecutors say the men accepted millions of dollars from the one-time co-owner and builder of two juvenile detention centers the county utilized.

The lawsuits contend Ciavarella, the county’s longtime juvenile court judge, and Conahan conspired to incarcerate more juveniles in order to benefit themselves financially.

Caputo’s prior rulings shielded the county and several offices, including the district attorney and public defender, from liability. The motion filed Thursday by attorney Timothy Myers seeks to formalize those rulings by officially dismissing the county.

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