In Luzerne County a special commission met Monday to hear more about juvenile injustice and how a major corruption scandal can be avoided in the future.
The Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice heard from a judge assigned to look into juvenile injustice in Luzerne County. He said what happened in the county was justice run amok.
For about two hours, Senior Berks County Judge Arthur Grim spoke before a panel in Plains Township.
Grim is the judge who looked into thousands of juvenile cases decided by former Luzerne County judge Mark Ciavarella.
"There was routine deprivation of children's constitutional rights to appear before an impartial tribunal and to have an opportunity to be heard," Judge Grim said.
Ciavarella has been accused of sending thousands of young people to detention centers to make kickback money in Luzerne County. He is facing dozens of federal corruption charges.
"He was quoted as having said he read the files ahead of time which is so obviously on its face the wrong thing to do. It absolutely blew my mind," added Judge Grim.
A group of officials put together by state lawmakers is investigating what happened and how to keep it from ever happening again.
"We have been directed to conduct a noncriminal investigation into the failure of juvenile justice system, to take steps designed to restore public confidence in the administration of justice and to make recommendations to avoid a repeat of such a breakdown," said Judge John Cleland of the Interbranch Commission. "How do we create a system in which those who see corruption call the police? How do we create a system in which prosecutors who see a judge flagrantly disregard the law make a report to the judicial conduct board?"
Judge Grim said the juvenile court system in Luzerne County and across the state needs to be more transparent and there needs to be a requirement that attorneys be in the courtroom.
"The community at large, in my opinion, has been victimized by this. The impact on citizens again that I have heard from by mail and by email have indicated to me that they have felt victimized by it," added Judge Grim.
The commission members aren't the only ones asking questions. A man at the hearing Monday said his son was sent to juvenile detention by Ciavarella. "I was there when the kids were there with the orange jumpsuits and the cuffs and the shackles and he sent them away in the blink of an eye," the man said.
Monday night a former county probation official herself charged with corruption is scheduled to testify before the commission.
Tuesday the former and current Luzerne County district attorneys will speak as well.
The Interbranch Commission on Juvenile Justice heard from a judge assigned to look into juvenile injustice in Luzerne County. He said what happened in the county was justice run amok.
For about two hours, Senior Berks County Judge Arthur Grim spoke before a panel in Plains Township.
Grim is the judge who looked into thousands of juvenile cases decided by former Luzerne County judge Mark Ciavarella.
"There was routine deprivation of children's constitutional rights to appear before an impartial tribunal and to have an opportunity to be heard," Judge Grim said.
Ciavarella has been accused of sending thousands of young people to detention centers to make kickback money in Luzerne County. He is facing dozens of federal corruption charges.
"He was quoted as having said he read the files ahead of time which is so obviously on its face the wrong thing to do. It absolutely blew my mind," added Judge Grim.
A group of officials put together by state lawmakers is investigating what happened and how to keep it from ever happening again.
"We have been directed to conduct a noncriminal investigation into the failure of juvenile justice system, to take steps designed to restore public confidence in the administration of justice and to make recommendations to avoid a repeat of such a breakdown," said Judge John Cleland of the Interbranch Commission. "How do we create a system in which those who see corruption call the police? How do we create a system in which prosecutors who see a judge flagrantly disregard the law make a report to the judicial conduct board?"
Judge Grim said the juvenile court system in Luzerne County and across the state needs to be more transparent and there needs to be a requirement that attorneys be in the courtroom.
"The community at large, in my opinion, has been victimized by this. The impact on citizens again that I have heard from by mail and by email have indicated to me that they have felt victimized by it," added Judge Grim.
The commission members aren't the only ones asking questions. A man at the hearing Monday said his son was sent to juvenile detention by Ciavarella. "I was there when the kids were there with the orange jumpsuits and the cuffs and the shackles and he sent them away in the blink of an eye," the man said.
Monday night a former county probation official herself charged with corruption is scheduled to testify before the commission.
Tuesday the former and current Luzerne County district attorneys will speak as well.
