Luzerne County Court Fills Vacant Judgeship Seats
After a series of scandals from 2008-2009 which left Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas with vacancies in six out of ten judges’ seats, 2012 will finally see the court again fully-staffed. On November 9, 2011, Timesleader.com’s Sheena Delazio reported that six new judges won election in the county.
Jennifer Rogers, a civil litigator who first ran in 2009, received the most votes with 41,706, trailed by Fred Pierantoni with 39,881. The other winners are Joseph Sklarosky Jr., Michael Vough, Dick Hughes, and Lesa Gelb.
The new judges will be occupying seats left by former judges Ann Lokuta, Mark Ciavarella, Jr., Michael Conahan, Michael Toole, and Peter Paul Olszewski.
As I have written about before, Ciavarella and Conahan were removed from the bench in relation to the “Cash For Kids” scandal. Ciavarella chose to go to trial and was found gulity. Conahan pled guilty.
The new and fully staffed 2012 court promises to begin a new era for Luzerne County. The new judges have released statements expressing how “humbled” and “honored” they feel to be elected. County judges serve 10-year terms.
For more information on Luzerne County’s new judges, see the Times Leader’s article.
