Luzerne County Judges

Court controversy

October 2, 2009

Woman in pay dispute on judge’s guest list

Angela Sallemi, whose salary hike was blasted by commissioners, was one of the visitors to Michael Conahan’s Florida condo.

By Terrie Morgan-Besecker tmorgan@timesleader.com
Law & Order Reporter
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A court reporter who received a controversial promotion and $21,000 raise in the days before former president judge Mark Ciavarella left office was among the guests who went on the June 2005 trip to former judge Michael Conahan’s condominium in Florida

Angela Sallemi, chief court stenographer for the county, attended the trip with attorney John H. Kennedy, whom she was dating at the time, according to Kennedy.

The couple joined Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. and the woman he was seeing at the time, Jeri Ann Mack, for a several-day outing hosted by Conahan and his wife, Barbara, at their condo at the Jupiter Yacht Club in Jupiter, Florida.

Ciavarella, who along with his wife co-owned the condominium, promoted Sallemi to chief stenographer in January and increased her salary from $57,000 to $78,000.

The move was among a series of controversial hires/transfers Ciavarella, who served as president judge, made in the weeks prior to his arrest on Jan. 26 on corruption charges.

Commissioner Chairwoman Maryanne Petrilla railed against the increase, which was pushed through as commissioners were in the midst of laying off dozens of county employees due to the county’s poor financial condition.

Sallemi’s salary was later reduced by $10,850, to $67,150, as part of $2.8 million in budget cuts the county’s remaining judges put together following Ciavarella’s arrest.

Kennedy said he and Sallemi spent several days at the condo with the Conahans, Olszewski and Mack. They were joined on one of the days by Ronald Belletiere, whom Conahan introduced as a friend.

Belletiere was convicted of participating in the Empire Drug Ring that operated in the Hazleton area in the mid 1980’s. His presence at the condo created a controversy after a photo of him standing with Olszewski, Kennedy and Conahan was mailed to several media outlets last week by an anonymous source.

Olszewski and Kennedy each said they had no idea of Belletiere’s background at the time of the trip.

Kennedy said Conahan invited him on the trip to thank him for representing court reporters, at no charge, in a dispute they had with commissioners regarding pay. Kennedy said at the time he was dating Sallemi and asked her to join him.

The three couples flew to the condo on a private jet owned by Hazleton cable entrepreneur Joseph Gans.

Kennedy and Olszewski said they believed the flight had been arranged by Conahan, who told them he had purchased “hours” on the aircraft. Attempts to reach Gans over the past several days have been unsuccessful.

Olszewski said he paid Conahan $400 for the flight for himself. Kennedy said he did not pay anything. As far as he knows Sallemi and Mack did not pay for the flight.

Sallemi did not immediately return phone messages left at her home and on her cell phone late Thursday afternoon. Mack also did not immediately return a phone message.

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